Breeding Partners Forever
by Daciavu73
Summary: This will be a Max/Alec pairing fic. Further details below
1. Chapter 1

Summary - This is an AU I thought of regarding Dark Angel. The virus is gone, Max and Logan are married with a child and have moved to Hartford, Connecticut. Logan is now CEO of Cale Industries, and the first order of business was recalling the "hunter chip" in all the hoverdrones and destroying them. He is now an honest multi-millionaire that doesn't profit off the death of others, and he and Max still fight government corruption together as "Eyes Only". Max finally has the normal life she always wanted. Or does she?

Rating should start out G or PG, but as the story continues, there will be eventual smut, so whole story rating will be NC17. If you're under 18, do not read this fic. If you are over 18 and bothered by smut, I would recommend you not read this fic. This will eventually become a Max/Alec pairing fic and there will be a character death. Most will learn that I am a die hard Max/Alec pairing fan. :)

Again, I own nothing regarding DA. I make no profit from the fics I write, it is only for the joy the writing that I do this. Feedback is welcome, good or bad.

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Max was struggling to insert the door key into her front door while juggling numerous paper sacks from the supermarket. She had run some errands and was back from her weekly grocery shopping, her arms full, but plenty of ingredients for Logan's famous fetticine alfredo

The movement of her hand against the doorknob almost caused her to fall inside in a heap. It was then that she realized.... the door was already open.

They NEVER just leave the door open

Pushing it open further with her toe, her Manticore "spidey-sense" was kicking in.

Something was wrong. As a matter of fact, something was VERY wrong. It was way too quiet in a house that usually echoes with her three year old son's laughter, or the bustle of Original Cindy running after the toddler. She set her bags on the porch and stayed crouched down, checking quickly with her enhanced vision the entry way, the stairway leading to the second floor and the living room that was to the left of the door. Everything was too quiet. She could swear she even heard crickets chirping

"OC? Logan?" Max called out, watching very carefully for any sign of life. Max hired Original Cindy as a nanny for her three year old son, Keegan, before moving to away from Seattle. OC had happily handed her notice to Normal and headed out to Connecticut with Max

There were obvious signs of a struggle, which worried Max more. She pulled out her cell phone and called Logan first as she carefully made her way inside, checking every room as she went

And she heard a cell phone ringing somewhere within housem which indicated to her that either Logan was home, or he left his cell phone. Following the sound to the sunroom/playroom in the back of the house, she dropped her cell phone and ran to the man that has been her husband for the past three years

"Logan!!" she cried out in a panic, crouching next to him and checking for a pulse. What she feared most was confirmed

Logan Cale was dead

Making herself stay focused like Manticore taught her to do, she found Original Cindy in the kitchen. Her pulse was faint, which relieved Max. She's still alive!

"Keegan!" Max yelled for her son, rapidly going room to room, trying to find the toddler, fear clutching her throat. "Keegan!! Sweetheart! Answer Mommy! Where are you??"

She searched the whole house, but no blond-headed three year old boy who was usually underfoot and chattering when she was home

Max finally called the police, and then while waiting on them to show up, she went into Logan's office and deleted all files on Logan's computer regarding "Eyes Only" because the police will more than likely confiscate Logan's hard-drive

Then she pulled up the security camera feed, making a copy for herself and she found how that one hour ago, Logan came home as a surprise and was playing with Keegan in the play room, giving OC a break. OC was in the kitchen fixing lunch for herself and three men stampeded into the house with guns drawn. Logan and OC tried their best to protect Keegan.... and from what Max could tell, Keegan was their prime objective.

And then she saw when OC hit one of men with a fireplace poker.... and the guy didn't even flinch

Familiars!

There were too many Familiars in important government roles. She would have to find her son on her own, or with the help of those she trusted completely

Which meant once the police came and conducted their investigation, she had a phone call to make.

She really needed X5-494's help.

--------------------  
Within 24 hours, Alec was on a plane heading for Connecticut

On a Cale Industries private jet no less

_These are really nice digs_, Alec thought as he sipped his scotch and looking around at the plush interior within the jet

He can see why Max left Seattle. This was a lifestyle one could easily get used to!

Alec had his laptop open and tapped a few keys, viewing the video footage Max sent him, and Alec had to agree with Max. This was obvious work of the Familiars.

Alec now worked as a private investigator in Seattle. It brought in much better money than working at Jam Pony and this job allowed him to use the skills he had trained for all of his life

One thing he couldn't understand while watching the video footage. What purpose would the Familiars have in kidnapping Max's child? That's what Alec wanted to know. Was it revenge? Was it some other dark, religious reason that they had?

Alec didn't know, but for Max's sake as well as Keegan's, he was going to help Max find out

Max had to be going through a terrible time. Her husband is dead, the funeral is tomorrow, OC is in the hospital in a coma, and Keegan is missing. Alec knew the only way Max was holding it together was to draw on her life in Manticore. Put on an unemotional mask and keep moving through the pain.

Alec always had a soft spot for his former "breeding partner", and he knew the moment she asked for his help, he'd do all he could to find her child for her


	2. Chapter 2

Max had thought of everything, Alec realized, as he walked into the Hilton Hotel in Hartford, Connecticut. He gave his name at the front desk and he found out a room was reserved and paid for by Cale Industries aka Max Guavera-Cale. A bellhop took his duffel and led him toward the elevators that would bring him to the penthouse suite reserved for him.

He had to hand it to Max. She had good taste. He also was given a charge account for room service. Which once again, would be paid for by Max, or at least, Cale Industries.

Once he tipped the bellhop and closed the door behind him, he immediately decided a shower would be in order. Jet lag was getting to him, but he had work to do. Regardless of his past jealousy towards Logan, they did find a middle ground, of sorts. He no longer held a grudge against Logan for winning Max. And he came to terms with the fact that Max had loved Logan years ago, and he was just the smart-alec sidekick in her eyes.

The sidekick she had had incredible sex with once during a heat cycle, just before Max and Logan married. A night he'd never forget for the rest of his life.

Sighing in nostalgia, he walked into the bathroom, stripped out of his clothes and turned on the water in the shower. It had one of those overhead showerheads that sprayed down the water like it was warm rain. Once the water was at the temperature he liked, he pulled the chain and stepped inside.

So many memories started coming back as he shampooed his hair and rinsed. Memories he had pushed to the back to his mind years ago, because Max became off-limits.

Back then, Max thought she could just get Alec to scratch the itch caused by the heat cycle Manticore cursed her with and move on, pretending their one night never happened. Little did she know that Alec's feelings were a lot more involved than he let her see. He had his pride after all! Which is why when she chose to marry Logan, he didn't put up a fight. He wanted her to be happy. She wanted to be "normal" and he knew how impossible that actually was. But you could never tell Max that. Come hell or high water, she gets what she wants. And until Logan's death, it had worked for her.

He knew she had every intention of going back to Logan and that he really never stood a chance. So, to soothe his own ego, he struck first before she could reject him. He passed their night off as a lust-crazed encounter that couldn't be helped because of the heat cycle. At least that's what it seemed like she wanted to hear and that was what he told her. He gave her one night and a few days later, she had the cure for the Logan-DNA-targeted-retrovirus . Logan and Max were once again the happy couple. She did go back to Logan, just like he thought she would, they married within a month and then moved to Connecticut. Moved completely out of Alec's life and breaking his heart in the process.

But he'd be damned if Max ever knew that.

She will never know, he swore to himself as he scrubbed off the grunge from the plane trip. This was just a friend calling for his Manticore expertise in search and retrieval. That's it. And there's not going to be any more to it.

His heart won't be able to stand it a second time.

Once he was finished with the shower, he turned off the water and opened the glass shower door, reaching for the robe provided by the hotel, he shrugged into it and tied the belt. Grabbing a towel to dry his hair, he padded back into the bedroom area, still deep in thought.

That night he had with Max still haunted his dreams sometimes. Manticore taught him to push it to the back of his mind and keep going, but once in a while, it would creep back out just so he could relive it again. Turning on the TV, an old sitcom about 7 people stranded on a deserted island broke through the silence of the room, but he wasn't really paying attention. His mind wandered back to that time.

* * *

**_(Crash - Seattle, Washington - 4 years ago)._**

_Alec entered Crash, the overcrowded bar setting him on edge as soon as he stepped inside. His skin felt like it was crawling and about to jump off his body, but he couldn't quite put his finger on the reason why he felt this antsy, just from walking into a bar he frequents almost on a nightly basis._

_He had felt this way before, he vaguely recalled. His nostrils were flaring now, there was something in the air, and his heart began to race.. Dammit! When was it? The last time he felt this way? Felt this on-edge, lusty feeling?_

_He walked down the iron stairs to the ground floor of the bar, the antsy feeling intensifying with each step._

_Then his eyes met Max's across the bar. His breath hitched, and it all came back to him. He remembered where he had felt this way before._

_Manticore! Fuck! She's in heat!_

_Alec's eyes widened at the realization. His two years as a Manticore "stud" breeder brought it all back. He was about to turn and run, because this was not how he wanted it with Max. Not just a hormone driven screw. If he ever had the privilege of being between Max's legs, it would be to make love to her, not just a quick fuck._

_There's no way any X5 male can fight those heat hormones, but he would sure as hell try, at the very least. The only problem was, his feet were rooted to the spot in the middle of Crash as Max sashayed closer and closer to him, completely oblivious to everyone else in the bar. For once, she was dressed to kill in a red mini dress, with matching high heels and she was actually wearing make-up. Not the usual attire for Max, who normally came to Crash wearing whatever she wore to work, or in a pair of cargo pants and fitting top._

_She was showing a whole lot more skin now, he realized as he stared at her exposed gorgeous legs and her feet in those "fuck me" shoes. He wanted nothing more than to fall to his knees and worship this goddess._

_Swallowing past the lump that developed in his throat, he couldn't peel his eyes away from her as she stood in front of him with a kittenish smile. She brought a hand up to his face trailing a finger over his bottom lip._

_Alec tried valiantly to fight the seductive pull of Max's hormones, grabbing her wrist in a firm grip and removed the playful finger off his mouth, gritting his teeth._

_"Max... go home. Please!" Alec tried to sound stern, he really did, but it came out more pleading than anything._

_She took a step closer to him barely leaving any space between them. Alec let out a groan, his pupils dilating, his nostrils flaring, as her pheromones were pushing him over the edge. He knew he had exactly thirty seconds to get the hell out of Dodge, or else all his good intentions would fly out the window. He'd find the nearest flat surface to throw Max onto and take what she's offering in her heat-induced fog, or risk getting arrested for indecent exposure, at the very least. He would probably be getting an ass-kicking tomorrow if he knew Max the way he thought he did._

_"I don't want to." Max pouted up at him in a very un-Max-like manner as she rubbed her body against his._

_Luckily, the people at Crash are used to seeing this kind of thing and barely took notice of the two X5s standing "center stage" with no daylight showing between them, except for a few curious onlookers that knew Max and Alec and also knew the two of them were more like antagonists than friends._

_Alec groaned as her body rubbed against his and he closed his eyes for a moment. Her warm, soft, pliable body felt incredible against his, even if it was a muted sensation due the layers of clothes still between them. By now, Alec was almost in pain and his voice was a tortured whisper, "Max... If you value our friendship at all, for the love of God, go home."_

_"Oh, I value our friendship Alec." she purred, running her fingers through the back of his hair now, trailing her lips up his neck. She could feel his pulse beat faster and knew he was clenching his fists in an effort to keep from touching her. She rose up on her toes and breathed hotly in his ear, "Don't you want me?" She bit his earlobe, and then whispered, "My Smart-Alec."_

_With her warm body against his, her nibbling his ear lobe, Alec could feel himself getting harder and harder by the second. He managed to choke out, "What about Logan? Aren't you two still... ?_

_"He can't help me with this Alec. The virus, remember?" she whimpered into his ear as she licked the outer shell, making him tremble._

_His walls were crumbling down by the second. She was apparently on day three of her heat cycle, the strongest day of the whole cycle. He knew if he didn't do as she asked, she'd find someone else. And at this moment, he knew he wasn't willing for that to happen either._

_Alec placed his hands on her waist as she nuzzled his neck, his hands giving her waist a squeeze before he trailed his hands down over her ass. Decision made, his hands caressed her, pulling her against him, making her feel his need against her stomach._

_"Maxie, do you have any idea what kind of hell you're putting me through?" Alec groaned, closing his eyes and inhaling her scent, his face pressed in her neck. Her perfume was so sensual, not the usual jasmine and leather smell. He nuzzled her neck before lightly biting her bare shoulder._

_She placed her hands into his hair, pulled his head back so she could make eye contact, then leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. With a swipe of the tip of her tongue across his bottom lip, he instinctively parted his lips and finally allowed himself to deepen the kiss._

_There was no way he could fight it any longer, Manticore made sure of that. An X5 male plus an X5 female in heat always equals mating. Pure and simple. Manticore also made sure X5s preferred other X5s, and because of this, neither of them cared about anyone else in the room._

_Alec raised his head and looked around quickly, looking for a place to allow them a few minutes of privacy. Spying just the place, he took her hand and dragged her to one of the back storage rooms._

_He honestly didn't care if they got caught. As a matter of fact, fucking her in front of an audience turned him on._

_He pulled the curtain closed on one of the storage closets and slammed Max hard against the wall, his mouth crashing down on hers seconds later._

_He was completely lost now, and there was no turning back._


	3. Chapter 3

Alec's cell phone was ringing on the bedside table, interrupting his trip down memory lane. He glared at the offending instrument, then picked it up, flipped it open and gave a terse, "What??"

"Geez Alec! What crawled up your ass?"

It was Dix, who was back home at Terminal City and trying to help him with the Keegan Cale case, sending whatever intel he found by hacking into government computers.

Alec sighed and rubbed a hand over his face tiredly, "Sorry man. I'm just tired. What's up?"

"Have you taken a good look at Keegan's birth certificate?"

Alec frowned and got out of bed to walk to his briefcase that was sitting on the table provided by the hotel, "I haven't thought much about it. Didn't seem important."

"Well, he was born about 6 months after Logan and Max married."

"So?"

Dix sighed, "Alec, think it over for a minute. All of us at TC know that you were with Max during her heat cycle, and that happened just before the government liberated us and declared all transgenics US citizens. Check the date of birth and you do the math. Gestational period for a normal pregnancy is 40 weeks, which is around the time YOU were with Max."

A sick feeling hit Alec in the pit of his stomach as he opened the file, cradling his phone on his shoulder and finding the birth certificate. He knew the exact date he and Max got together, due to a perfect eidetic memory. He calculated mentally and sure enough, the time period was off by about 3 days.

But he also knew X5 sperm can stay active for four days, twice as long as human sperm.

"Dude? You still there?" Dix asked when the silence was getting a little too long.

Alec had to sit down as he answered, "Yeah, I'm fine. Look.... this doesn't prove anything. One week later, Max received the cure for the retrovirus and you know she and Logan probably got together pretty quickly afterward, possibly that very night. And besides, Dr. Carr told me Logan is the father."

"Riight, one of Cale's best friends, whom he probably paid to say that. I think you need to get a second opinion. You have a right to know. If you find Keegan, get a DNA test."

"Why stir the pot Dix? If this is my baby, Max would have told me."

"You really think so? Because I'm not so sure. She abandoned all of us Alec. It's like she wanted to be 'ordinary' so much that she cut ties with all of us and ran off with Logan to the other side of the continent. Maybe she didn't want to try and fit you into her 'normal' lifestyle. Have you ever thought of that?"

"Max didn't abandon us Dix. She was in love with Logan for about 2 years by the time all of that happened. They finally got the cure for the retrovirus and lived happily ever after. Or at least until recently."

"She was our leader Alec. And she left us. Bottom line. You stepped in afterward as the leader in Max's place because you're a sucker and didn't want us getting mad at Max."

"No Dix, I had more training as a military leader than Max did, that's why she stepped down and I stepped up. And as your leader, don't ever say shit like that about Max around me."

"You still got it bad." Dix said with a slight laugh.

"Is this all you wanted?" Alec asked, irritated as hell at Dix for getting under his skin.

"For now, that's it. Talk to Max, Alec. Find out."

"What I do is my own business. Call me when you have something concrete about Keegan. Until then, stay out of my personal business."

"Yes sir!"

Alec disconnected, and then stared at the birth certificate again.

He stood and placed the birth certificate back into the folder on top of all other information he obtained on the kidnapping, closed the folder and carefully placed it back in his briefcase, closing the lid.

_**(One month after Max and Alec's heat induced encounter)**_

_Alec was pacing in the hospital corridor while Logan took a seat in one of the plastic chairs provided. Both men looked pensive._

_Alec was talking to no one in particular, muttering, "How the hell can Dr. Carr handle a DNA test on a baby that's not even here yet? As a matter of fact, it's not actually a baby; it's a little embryo about the size of a peanut for crying out loud!"_

_Logan was wearing his business suit, having wrapped up what he needed to do at work in order to drive Max to see Dr Carr for this procedure. Logan eyed the male X5 critically._

_"There have been many technological advances in medicine. We know Max is pregnant. All they have to do is an amniocentesis. I don't know all the technical stuff because I'm not a doctor, but I can say they can separate the DNA out to find out to about 90% accuracy who the father is. What amazes me is how she knows she's pregnant after a few weeks."_

_"Kitty cat DNA. X5 females can find out they're pregnant in a matter of a couple of weeks after conception."_

_Alec didn't sit, he was too nervous. He stopped pacing and leaned his shoulders against the far wall, biting a thumbnail nervously._

_"Alec..... if this baby is yours, how will you support it?"_

_Alec shot a look at Logan and answered in his cavalier manner, "That's a question you might not want answered, Logan."_

_Logan stood, the exoskeleton whirring underneath his suit and he placed his hands in his pants pockets, contemplating, "What are we talking about here? Robbery? Pool hustling? Pimping?"_

_At that last one, Alec stood to his full height, "Pimping? Who the hell do you..."_

_Logan's hands were now up in surrender, "Hey! I don't know! I'm taking shots in the dark here! You are not the most moral guy on the planet Alec. What kind of father would YOU make? Teaching him about breaking and entering maybe? Or how to be a bike messenger?"_

_"Don't you dare rub your prestigious background in my face. I may not have money, but by God, I'll step up for this baby, IF we find it's mine. And you can take your newfound wealth and shove it up your ass!"_

_Both men glared at each other until Logan finally sighed and said, "Look, I only want what is best for Max's baby. Surely, you want the same?"_

_"Of course I do, but I also have a responsibility if I'm the one that knocked her up. This means having me in that baby's life IS the best thing, IF I'm the father."_

_"Which brings me back to how will you support this baby? Because from my standpoint, you can't. You no longer work as a bike messenger. You couldn't go back to work after the Familiar siege on Jam Pony."_

_"I've got plans in the works, don't worry about me. The money will be there."_

_At that moment, Dr. Carr came out of the examination room and closed the door. Obviously Max was getting dressed._

_"Follow me gentlemen. We'll talk in my office down the hall."_

_They walked into Dr. Carr's office. Alec and Logan sat in the visitor's chairs as Dr. Carr closed the door and walked around his desk to take a seat._

_"Max and the baby are doing fine. I did the lab work myself for the DNA testing."_

_Dr. Carr looked at both men and then turned to Logan with a smile._

_"Logan, congratulations, you're the father with an 87.5 % accuracy. Alec wasn't even on the chart."_

_Logan closed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief as Alec stared into space. Then he finally met the doctor's eyes._

_"Well doc, I appreciate your help in this. I think this is my cue to leave and let the new parents celebrate their good news. And Logan...." Alec turned to Logan and said, "Take care of them.... or I'll hunt you down."_

_Logan's blue eyes met Alec's green ones as he nodded, "I'll guard them with my life Alec, you know that."_

_Alec walked out of Dr Carr's office and didn't stick around to talk to Max_

_It would be way too painful to do so._

_**(Present day)**_

Later that evening found Alec at Max's house in an upscale neighborhood in Concord. He was let in by Max herself, who sent the whole staff home so she could grieve in peace. It was just the two of them in the whole house by themselves.

Doubts and questions flooded Alec's mind now. Damn that Dix! Why did he have to stir up a hornet's nest?

Setting down his briefcase, Alec came straight to the point, "I have just one question to ask Max, and I want a straight answer." Alec announced as he placed his briefcase on the dining room table and proceeded to open it.

"I've never given you less." Max replied flippantly, folding her arms across her chest and refusing to sit down. That tone in Alec's voice always brooked trouble and she needed every advantage she could get, considering that Alec himself was still standing as well.

"Is Keegan my son?" Alec asked bluntly, coming straight to the point and meeting Max's eyes.

Alec saw the slight hesitation in her eyes, the only indication that he was on to something. Max was true Manticore, never reveals her emotions to the other person, never shows a weakness. Only another Manticore alumni is trained to catch these subtle cues.

She kept all emotion out of her face as she met his eyes squarely, "No Alec, he isn't."

Alec sighed and said, "OK" Alec quietly pulled out a file from his briefcase and slid it toward her on the dining room table. She didn't move to open it, just watched Alec warily as he continued, "Keegan was born almost exactly 40 weeks from the night we were together Max. Still wanna stick with that story?"

"And I was with Logan one week after I was with you, AND I have a confirmed DNA test that proved Logan is the father."

Alec reached across and flipped open the file that Max hadn't even touched yet. He pointed at something on the front page, Keegan's birth certificate, "And Dr Carr was in league with Logan, the two of them were best friends. I want another DNA test. Just to be sure."

"Keegan is LOGAN'S child Alec." Max gritted through her clenched teeth, eyes narrowing in her anger.

"And I don't believe you." Alec replied back, the tic in his jaw the only indication of his own anger.

Max shrugged and rolled her eyes, "You know what? Believe whatever the hell you want Alec. Logan is Keegan's real father."

"And I was just the sperm donor, is that it?"

Max's patience was wearing thin and she snapped, "Let me be very clear Alec. You're not the father and I'm done with this conversation. I don't have time to deal with your drama. I have a funeral to arrange for Logan, a best friend in the hospital that's still in a coma and a son that is God knows where, and you're not doing a damn thing to help, except throw around accusations. Keep that up and I'll just deal with finding Keegan myself. I'm beginning to wonder why I called you in the first place!"

"Like hell I will stand by and let you go out hunting Familiars on your own!" Alec came around the dining room table so fast that Max could have sworn he blurred. He towered over her in anger and pointed at himself for emphasis "You called ME here, you wanted MY help, and I'm going to find Keegan and I'm going to prove he is my son." Now his voice lowered to a more threatening tone, "If I find out differently after a DNA test that I am not the natural father, I'm out of your life with my sincerest apologies and you won't have to pay a thing for the detective work I do. But if I'm right.... so help me Max.... I don't know if I can ever forgive a woman that would take three years of my son's life away from me.... I'll spend the rest of my fucking life making it up to him. As God is my witness, I'll find a way to make sure I get shared custody IF he's my son."

"And I'll keep you tied up in court appealing anything you think you've won, because you will NOT have my son!"

Alec's voice was rising now as well, "I don't give a damn about your money or whatever influence you have. You WILL have a fight on your hands. Until then...." He took a deep breath to try and calm himself and he lowered his voice, "We'll work together to find your son. Because it's the right thing to do."

"How dare you threaten me!"

Alec now returned to his cocky trademark smirk, "First off, you threatened me first. Second, you have nothing to worry about if I find out I'm wrong. Now, get some workout clothes on."

"Alec, I don't have time for..."

"Shut up Max. You have people handling everything for you regarding Logan and OC. You wanna find your son? You need to get in shape soldier! I'm certain you haven't fought a Familiar in four years! Now move your ass and meet me in the gym. You have 5 minutes 452, let's go!"

The very intense, angry look on Alec's face when he towered over her caused Max's memory to flash back to their one night together, causing a sense of deja vu. She waited until she got to her bedroom and began putting on her workout leotard before she allowed her mind to wander.

Max realized in that moment that when Alec towered over her earlier, he had had that same intense look while they were making love. No, while they fucked, Max amended her thoughts. There was no lovemaking involved. It was heat induced, it was extremely intense and it was just sex. At least that's what she remembered he had told her so long ago.

Alec had had a jealous moment that was so unlike his usual attitude. He was on top of her, screwing her brains out in a way she had never felt before and she had closed her eyes to enjoy the sensations. He felt so good and so right, and so PERFECT......... no one had ever given her what she had truly needed during a heat cycle, and apparently, only an X5 male could keep up with her. God! He felt so good and was giving it to her so hard......

But then, he stopped suddenly and speared his hands into her hair, pulling slightly and gritting out, "Look at me, dammit!"

She frowned. Her eyes flew open and she saw it, that intense flash in his eyes as he ground out, "Don't you DARE think of HIM while you're with me!"

Perplexed, Max shook her head, sounding a little breathless, "There is no way I can mistake you for someone else Alec."

"Good!"

He proceeded to pound into her again, forcefully, making the bed creak and squeak in a hard rhythm and bang against the wall at the same time, but making damn sure he kept eye contact with her.

He could feel that she was about to cum again for the umpteenth time that night, that she wanted desperately to cum again. He could feel her nails digging into his ass spurring him to move quicker, harder.

"Cum for me Maxie." Alec murmured against her mouth, nipping her bottom lip as he pushed her, as well as himself, toward a powerful orgasm.

"Alec??" Max whimpered, it was the most erotic sound that Alec had ever heard as he forced her toward yet another ground breaking orgasm, "Oh... my.....GOD.... ahhh..."

Alec couldn't hold back anymore, especially after she said his name in that breathy, seductive voice and making all kinds of pleasurable noises that HE caused. He knew that she knew who was giving her all the pleasure within her body, and with this knowledge, he exploded within her.

She cried out hard and loud too, calling his name, screaming out her pleasure. His mouth was next to her ear now as he called her name out as well.

"Oh God Alec!!"

"Maxie!! Fuck.... yes!!"

"You're incredible!"

"And you're beautiful!"

Once they were spent, it was within moments that he was hard and ready again, just like the numerous times they've been through this already in five hours. Max felt him harden within her and she groaned.

"Alec? What are you doing to me?" Max moaned as Alec took her again.

"What I should have done when we first met, Maxie. If I knew then you were this smoking hot back then, that foot in my stomach wouldn't have deterred me."

_**(Back to present day)**_

"452, snap out of it!" Alec growled, pounding a few times with his fist on her closed bedroom door. "We have work to do. Let's go!"

"My name's Max you big dumbass! And don't you dare call me by my designation again!"

She charged her way out of the bedroom and toward the gym, tying her hair into a ponytail on the way. Alec knew Max well and he smiled within himself. The best thing to do was to get her mad in order to spur her into action. Otherwise, she would mope and feel sorry for herself and get nothing accomplished. As long as he's around, he won't allow that. He needs her focused if she insists on following him when he tries to find Keegan. He definitely didn't want to have to worry about her if they have to fight Familiars.

And he wants to keep her angry so it would help him keep his hands off of her.

He felt like a freakin' pervert. Her husband just died less than 48 hours ago. He's not even buried yet, and Alec wants to have her body again, in as many positions as possible. It was insane.

Even if it turns out she did lie to him all those years ago about Keegan.

_**(At Jam Pony - 2 days after Max's heat cycle ended)**_

_Max finished gathering what she needed out of her locker for her next run. As she slammed the locker door closed and placed her combination lock on it, she jumped, startled. Alec was standing there with an arm resting on the lockers._

_"Max, we need to talk." he stated without greeting._

_"Later! I'm busy." she snapped and threw her backpack over her shoulder, heading for her bicycle._

_Alec stepped in her way, blocking her progress. Max expected this and pushed him out of her way, causing him to stumble back a couple of steps. Determined, he snaked out a hand to grab her from behind as she passed. His arm came around her waist and he easily picked her up, carrying her into one of the downstairs storage rooms. He set Max down just inside the tiny storage area, locking the door behind him. As he turned back to her, she hit him hard on the shoulder and sputtered at him._

_"What the hell was that about, Tarzan??"_

_"You've been avoiding me the past two days Max. We HAVE to talk!"_

_"No, we don't HAVE to do anything except work. No work means no pay. Which also means no beer and no pool hustling. Get outta my way."_

_Alec blocked her again, "Hear me out Max. Give me just five minutes of your precious time, alright? Then you can leave with my blessing."_

_She checked her pager, set it for five minutes and then nodded, "OK, talk!"_

_"Have you ever been through Manticore sex-ed?"_

_"No, I'm a 'learn it as I go' kind of girl." Max replied sarcastically._

_"Well, here's the bottom line Max. It's very, VERY likely that you're now pregnant."_

_Max sighed and rolled her eyes, "Whatever! I take birth control pills, now get outta my way."_

_"Doesn't matter Max. That can help with ordinaries and X5's that get together, but two X5's.... a lot of times birth control pills do not effect the insemination. Have you ever seen two cats get together when the female is in heat? Pregnancy almost always follows."_

_"Well believe me, if I'm pregnant, you'll be the first to know, because I will kick your ass and you will have to pay child support. Now will you PLEASE let me go? Unless you have something else on your mind?"_

_Alec grabbed her by the shoulders, a very serious look on his face, "Swear to me Max..... you will tell me if you're pregnant, just as soon as you find out."_

_Max shrugged out of his hold, exasperated, "Sure, OK... now let me go!"_

_Satisfied for now, he stepped out of the way and allowed Max to unlock and open the door herself._

_**(Present day, Cale home gym)**_

"Alright, let's get your ass-kicking over with Pretty Boy." Max stood in a fighting stance, fists raised, mad as hell at him.

Alec cocked an eyebrow, "You still think I'm pretty? I'm touched Max!" As she glowered at him, he shrugged, "You can try darlin', but I doubt you'll succeed. How long has it been since you actually fought an X5?"

Max did a quick spin kick that caught Alec on the temple and brought him down. She grinned triumphantly down at him, "It's like riding a bike, you never forget."

Giving his head a shake, he stood back up, nodding his head toward her in a "Touché" motion. Max started to throw a punch toward his nose, Alec ducked and stepped to the side, grabbed her arm and using her weight as leverage, flipped her over his shoulder and down on her back on the mat.

"You caught me off guard the first time Maxie, now I'm ready."

She flipped herself back to her feet and the two of them began to spar. Their moves were so fast and fluid; the human eye would have a hard time following them. But before long, Alec had her pinned again.

"This is pathetic soldier! The worst excuse for fighting I have ever seen in my life, and I've seen ORDINARIES fight!"

"Fuck you Alec!" Max hissed.

Alec stood, grinning, making her get up on her own. He purposely goaded her. "Oh! You'd like that wouldn't you? Of course, I was the best fuck you ever had!"

Before Alec knew it, Max was coming after him with everything she had. Alec could barely keep up, but still accomplished it. It definitely helped to have daily training at Terminal City with other transgenics, whereas he was almost certain that all Max did was work out in the gym pretty much by herself, or with Logan coaching her. An ordinary with no military training and has an exo-skeleton to help him walk on paralyzed legs.

Alec finally had Max on her stomach in a head lock with one arm, the other arm keeping her arms immobile, and his body weight on top of her keeping her legs immobile.

He grunted into her ear, "Face it Max. You're out of shape. If you can't beat me, you certainly can't beat a Familiar."

Max seemed to admit defeat. Her body went slack and Alec heard what sounded like crying.

Alec instantly let go of her, concerned. He got off of her and turned her over, "Max? Are you OK?"

In a quick move, she had him on his back, her knees pinning his arms to the mat, sitting on his stomach, not one tear in her eye.

"Never underestimate your opponent 494. Did you forget your Manticore training?"

Alec lifted his legs, hooked his knees over her shoulders and flipped her off of him, then diving after her.

Three hours later, Alec was showered, wearing casual clothes of t-shirt and jeans. He was sitting at the dining room table going over some new information Dix faxed over to him, trying not to think about Max upstairs in the master bathroom taking a bubble bath.

Bubbles, hot water, sexy, naked woman in the bubbles and hot water....

_Focus 494! You got a job to do!_ Alec chided himself

There was surveillance video of Keegan being carried around by a man in a toy store in Des Moines, Iowa. The man turned toward the camera when this still picture was taken, his face clearly visible.

Ames White.

Well, that's one question answered. White is behind the disappearance of Keegan. And another question answered was that he was seen in Iowa as of yesterday.

Alec made a phone call to a police contact in Iowa. Luckily it's Normal's brother, the long lost twin brother he helped Normal find on his first case. The two brothers are now reconnecting and Alec felt he could call in a favor.

"Roger? Alec McDowell..... Yeah it's great to hear from you too. But unfortunately, this is not just a casual call. I need your help."


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note - I didn't get hardly any reviews on the last chapter, so just in case you haven't read it, be sure you do before moving on to this one. I will try to be more proactive on getting the chapters out in a more timely manner, especially if I get more reviews. Read and respond! :)**

The day of the funeral found Alec in the chapel at the Benjamin Franklin funeral parlor. He was standing outside the perimeter of the crowd, watching everyone carefully for any signs of one of White's "no pain" breeding cult lackeys.

He considered himself as Max's unofficial bodyguard today. He was dressed like every other man there. Dark blue suit and tie, light blue dress shirt, expensive loafers. The collar of his shirt with the tie helped keep his barcode covered.

He noticed he received a few admiring glances from women but he purposely ignored them. This is something he's pretty used to dealing with. Manticore made the X-5 series to be easy on the eyes. However, the few men that watched him were more suspicious, probably because the admirers were their wives or girlfriends!

The men had nothing to worry about as far as Alec was concerned. He wasn't interested. Now that he was back into Max's life, he had no interest in any other female. Sure, in the last four years, he's had plenty of one night stands, but he was always up front with them about not wanting anything long term. He still didn't believe in a transgenic having a relationship with an "ordinary". It just puts them in danger. He had his own painful memories of Rachel to remind him of this.

Alec caught Max's eye across the room and she gave a slight smile and nod, but then her attention was diverted by yet another couple conveying their condolences. In one way, he admired how Max kept herself under control. Not one tear was shed yet. It takes a lot of strength to keep it together like that.

But on the other hand, he also knew that she would have to let it out sometime. She would have to grieve. It's all part of the healing process.

Damn Manticore and their training of "stuffing your emotions down and getting the job done". Max may have been 10 years old when she first left Manticore, but it was still drilled into her even at that young age to show no emotion. Emotions were weaknesses.

He heard the organ begin to play and knew that the funeral was about to start. He decided to find a place to sit in the back, since he was not family, but surprisingly Max was standing next to him now. People rarely sneak up on him, but she had the grace of the cat DNA in her.

He watched her carefully. Her bottom lip was beginning to quiver, and a tear started pooling in her left eye. Apparently, she'd reached her limit.

"Alec?" she asked with a quaver in her voice and a hand on his arm, "I don't .... I mean..... could you sit with me.....um...."

The tears were beginning to flow now. Quickly, Alec scanned his eyes past the door of the chapel and saw an empty office within the funeral home. He placed an arm around her shoulders and escorted her out of the chapel, through the main funeral parlor and into the office he found. He closed the door then turned back to find her covering her face in her own hands, sobbing.

"Come here." Alec said softly as he wrapped her in his arms. Her arms went around his waist, her body shook with her sobs and she cried into his shoulder.

He was glad she was finally letting it out, and that he was there to help. He didn't know much about what to do with crying women. Most of the time, probably because he's a guy, it just scares the shit out of him. But he knew instinctively to hold her. He began making soothing, shushing noises, even passed her his handkerchief, at times kissing the top of her head.

"Oh God Alec!" she hiccupped a couple of times, "I don't have my baby in my arms, my best friend could die, Logan died..... maybe Renfro was right and I'm poison to everyone I touch!"

Alec loosened his hold enough to reach out and place a finger under her chin, making her look at him, "Hey! Listen to me. Renfro was a cold-hearted bitch. You are NOT poison Maxie. Don't ever tell yourself that again. We'll find Keegan," Then he snickered a little, "I believe that Original Cindy will open her eyes and declare how she wants to put the smack down on the dude that knocked her out, and you'll finally be able to move on." He became suddenly serious as he stroked her cheek. His voice was soft and reassuring, "Regardless of all I said yesterday..... Logan loved you Max. And even I can admit that for an ordinary..... as OC would say..... 'he's aiight."

This made Max give a small laugh as she dabbed her eyes and blew her nose.

"Maxie?" Alec said quietly. She looked up expectantly as he said, "I'm sorry for what I said yesterday. Accusing you of hiding information from me and all of that."

"No Alec, it's OK. I got to thinking...... well, it's something we'll need to talk about later. Because Keegan's parentage, I've had some doubts in my mind for the last year. I know what Dr Carr said and I just believed him. And Logan was a terrific father to Keegan. I just didn't want to believe …"

There was a knock on the door, and the director of the funeral parlor poked his head inside and smiled sympathetically, "Mrs. Cale, we're about to start the service."

Pulling herself together, she assumed the same grace and poise she had earlier, just that now her eyes were a little more red and puffy, "Thank you, I'll be right out."

"Max, do you still need me to sit with you?"

"Please?" Max asked, which is a word that rarely comes out of Max's mouth.

This time, Alec placed a hand on the small of her back escorting her back into the chapel, and to a front pew.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Please read and review. Thank you for the reviews I have received thus far. I'm hoping this chapter will answer a few questions, such as why Max married Logan so quickly and took off**_

That evening Alec and Max found themselves back at the Cale residence. It took three hours before Max opened up to Alec and discussed what she had referred to back at the funeral parlor

They were sitting on a couch in the den, Max on one end and Alec on the other. Alec was now waiting patiently for Max to confide in him, not wanting to push her too much.

She began quietly, playing with a thread on her skirt, "Last year when Keegan began walking, he wasn't just walking but blurring. Logan wrote it off that he was half X5 and would inherit some of my traits. Then as he began getting older.... he was the spitting image of you Alec."

Max sighed as she continued, "I just had this small doubt in my mind, that maybe Logan wasn't completely honest with me. But I kept pushing it aside. Logan and I had a history, he was a wonderful father to Keegan, and I did fall in love with him at one time, but the retrovirus forced me to stand back and think about our relationship. After the night you and I were together, I was so confused. I had some feelings for you that I was fighting against, and I was trying to figure it out too. Why would I feel _anything_ toward you? Do you remember the night that I approached you in Terminal City, before the big meeting with the mayor?"

"After your appointment with Dr. Carr." Alec clarified

"Yes.... I was going to talk to you about us.... again, keep in mind I was totally confused. I was in a relationship with Logan, we just found the cure for the retrovirus, we were finally becoming a couple... and yet I had these feelings for you too. I wasn't sure if it was a by-product from the heat cycle, or what it was... "

She trailed off and Alec said, "And I was still bristling over the news that I was not Keegan's father and I kinda took it out on you. The way I talked to you..... I'm sorry Max."

**(The night in reference)**

_Max walked into Terminal City, greeting Dix and Luke as she passed by the command center, but her mind was on the mind-blowing news she received this afternoon._

_She herself could have sworn she was pregnant after being with Alec and before getting with Logan..... but doctors should know best._

_She found Alec in their make-shift gym, putting all of his frustration into beating a punching bag as hard and fast as he could. Max watched for a moment and eventually stepped into the gym, calling out, "Alec... we need to talk."_

_Alec gave one final blow to the punching bag, causing styrofoam beads to fly out all over the place. Max rolled her eyes and shook her head. Great! Now they need to make room in the budget for a new punching bag_

_"There's no need to discuss anything Max. We found closure. Logan is the father of your baby, end of story."_

_"But..."_

_Alec turned on her with a growl, "Listen Max, I don't want to hear it, OK? I don't want to hear any more apologies or anything else for that matter. As far as I'm concerned, we had a one night stand. No strings attached. You went into heat, we fucked each other's brains out and the next morning we moved on." Alec shrugged as he used a towel to wipe the sweat off his brow, turning his back to her to say, "I'm actually glad I'm not the father. I'm not ready for a kid." Alec turned back to her, throwing the towel over his shoulder and getting his gym bag, "So I wish you and Logan all the best, but just do me a favor and let's keep you and me on a business level only, ok? I don't do relationships."_

_Hearing Alec speak this way, brushing her off made Max see red. It could have been pregnancy hormones, but the audacity that he just assumed she wanted a relationship with him due to one night together.... she hit him hard on the shoulder. His response was a conceited quirk of the eyebrow._

_"You arrogant son of a bitch! You think I want you?"_

_Alec was sarcastic, throwing some of her words about him back to her, "Hey! I'm a great catch. Ask any female within a 10 mile radius. I'm in high demand. But of course..." Alec walked closer to her, swaggering a little and he was actually flirting with her. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "If you want more, I'm always willing and able sweetheart."_

_She slapped him this time across the face, leaving a handprint on his cheek. He shook his head a bit, reached up to touch the sting on his cheek, then returned Max's glare with a sexy smile,_

_"That's one thing I love about you Maxie, you make the chase a whole lot more fun with that piss and vinegar you've got. I get so tired of the easy lays. A little fight would be nice once in a while."_

_He winked at her as he passed and just said, "Think about it."_

**(Present day)**

"God Max, I treated you like a slut and I'm sorry. I can't really explain what possessed me to do that. I simply wanted to play off our night as a one time thing and it got out of hand."

"The way you treated me made my decision for me Alec. At least Logan treated me like a lady."

"As you should be treated Max. I can see where you were coming from.... so were you honestly thinking of a relationship then?"

"It was a possibility, but I had some feelings to sort through, and I had hoped you'd help me sort them out. You did help...."

"Just not in the way you intended."

"Exactly. When I went back to Logan's, we talked long into the night about future plans. The next morning he asked me to marry him. I know it all happened so fast, but Logan and I had been 'together ' for so long and after what you said to me, and the fact that I thought I was going to have his baby...... I knew at that time he was the best decision. Logan's family is very old fashioned and they would never condone having a child out of wedlock. So we needed to marry before anyone found out about the baby."

"Which is why you married so quickly."

"Right. About a week before we married, Logan told me there was a new Cale Industries branch just opening in Concord and that he was asked to head it...."

"And you moved to Concord."

"Right."

"OK Max, I'm going to level with you. Get mad at me if you want, but this is the way I see it. I can be wrong, but I don't think I am." Alec began, and then started ticking everything off on his fingers, "One, Carr and Logan were in league with each other, and my theory is that Logan paid off Carr to tell us that he was the father of your baby. Two, He's the friggin' CEO of Cale Industries and he can choose where to set up his office, no one 'sends him' to an office, he's the boss, he chooses it. And three, I truly believe Logan loved you in his own way, and I'm thankful he was so good to Keegan, but that's where any good feelings I have toward Logan end. If I'm right and he manipulated both of us, he did it because he knew instinctively he would lose you if you had stayed. I know this because Logan and I had a chat a few days before you married."

**(Back to the past, two days before the wedding)**

_Alec was now feeling sorry for himself and nursing his scotch like it was his best friend. He didn't want to talk to anyone. Although he might not mind a little female company tonight._

_He couldn't help but notice that the only females he paid attention to lately were brunettes, preferably with big brown eyes and pouty lips._

_He gulped the rest of his scotch, then signaled the bartender, "Barkeep! Another shot!"_

_The bartender walked over and said, "Alec, that's your tenth shot, don't you think you've had enough?"_

_"It takes a lot to get me drunk Tommy, and I'm nowhere near drunk. Pour it." Alec demanded, pointing at his shot glass_

_"So..... how many drinks does it take to get Alec McDowell drunk, hm?"_

_Alec's teeth clenched at the dry humor, and then he turned to meet Logan Cale's eyes. Logan was dressed casually in a sweater and jeans this time, no business suit. Alec looked around him and asked, "Where's your fiancée?"_

_"At home packing. We leave for our honeymoon to the Caribbean in two days, and then we move to Concord when we get back."_

_"And you're here to rub it in I take it?"_

_Alec gulped his drink in one swallow and stared into the mirror behind the bar, meeting Logan's gaze in the mirror as Logan took the barstool next to him._

_"No.... but you're the closest thing Max has to family in Seattle and she would really like to have someone in her transgenic family bless her union."_

_Alec slammed his glass down on the bar and turned to face Logan, pointing at him, 'Let me tell you something Logan. No transgenic will ever condone Max getting married to an ordinary. So if she's looking for one of us to say they like this idea? She's not going to get it. Especially not from me."_

_Alec stood, tired of being in Logan's presence already and counted out the money to pay for his drink. Then as a parting shot, he told Logan, "She'll put you in danger Logan, and I don't think you'll be able to handle it."_

_Logan wasn't about to let him by with that, he stood and stepped into Alec's path, not letting him pass, as he asked "And you would?"_

_Alec smirked at the way Logan stopped him. He could have killed Logan so easily, but yet he had guts! Alec felt a small modicum of respect for the spine he was showing. "I'm better trained at handling danger than either of you are. We are hated Logan. Have you not watched the news? Your wife and your kid will have to deal with the hatred of the populace if anyone in Concord finds out Max is one of us. Then that reflects on you and your business ventures."_

_"I don't care what people think, and I never have." Logan was taller than Alec and he simply folded his arms, looking down at the transgenic male, "Max and the baby are my life Alec. If you can't accept that..."_

_"Oh I accept it all right. But that's not what this is about is it? Between you and me, guy to guy, I know what it is." Alec stepped closer to him and lowered his voice conspiratorially, "You can't stand the thought that I slept with Max. You are going to wonder for the rest of your married life if you measure up to a transgenic. Here's a tip..... if you're ever with a transgenic, as you may have found out by now, they will ALWAYS come out on top. Literally!"_

_Logan was now speechless for once and Alec nodded in satisfaction, "Now, get outta my way Logan."_

_Logan stepped aside and allowed Alec to pass this time. Alec felt a small bit of satisfaction at having got in the last word. And to bring the great Logan Cale, aka Eyes Only, down a peg or two._


	6. Chapter 6

**(Cale residence, night of the funeral)**

Max had fixed Alec a glass of scotch from the bar in the den and helped herself to a glass of wine. They were still deep in discussion about their relationship, past and present.

"So, where do we go from here?" Max asked Alec.

A little surprised, Alec smirked, "Well... I don't want to rush anything. And I absolutely don't want to be the rebound guy. You just buried your husband today and you need to grieve. We also need to find your son and that will mean I need your head in the game and not on a relationship. When we get Keegan back and we're all safe and sound, we'll have one of our medics back at Terminal City conduct the DNA test so we'll know for sure, one way or another, if I'm his father. Then, and only then, will we answer that question."

Max nodded, then said almost shyly, "I'm glad you came Alec. I appreciate the support."

Alec nodded, sipping his drink. Then he changed the subject, "Now, about Keegan, he was photographed on surveillance video in Des Moines, Iowa. How soon do you want to head there?"

"The sooner the better. This doing nothing is getting to me."

Alec stood and placed his empty glass on a coaster, "Then I'll be here tomorrow morning at 0700, ready for the trip to Des Moines. Do you prefer plane or car?"

"Plane, it's quicker. I'll call our personal pilot and make sure he's ready in the morning as well."

"Private plane, personal pilot, housekeeping staff that I'm sure usually meets just about all of your needs..... you have really moved up in the world Maxie."

"It's not as great as you think. Next to no privacy, you have to watch what you say around them, and you never know who to trust completely. I'm becoming more certain now than ever that Logan used them as his eyes and ears regarding Keegan and myself. What we've done, who I contact, etc."

"He had you monitored?" Alec asked, concerned

"I have no proof, it's a gut feeling."

Alec simply nodded and didn't say anything, but his mind kicked into over-drive thinking about the implications.

Max walked him to the door and politely showed him out. As soon as he got into his rented vehicle, he pulled out his cell phone and called Dix

"Hey, remember that hard drive Max sent us a copy of before I came out here? Logan's home hard drive?"

"Yeah?"

"Look over his files for anything saved within the last two weeks, any emails, any IMs and let me know if there is anything that points to Max's life being in danger, or Keegan's life."

"You think Logan had anything to do with Keegan's disappearance?"

"No, but I think he knew about it ahead of time, that there was a threat, which would explain why he came home early on the day of his death. While you're doing that, I'm going to the Cale Industries building."

"Are you going in the front door, or sneaking in the Manticore way."

Alec pulled out into the street after checking the traffic and snickered, "What do YOU think?"

"And you'll paw through Logan's belongings, because.....?"

"Because I'm a creep that gets my kicks out of going through the dead husband's things!" Alec quipped. After Dix's barking laughter, Alec smiled, then turned serious. "All I know is, Logan knew something before the Familiars attacked his home. I want to know what he knew, I want to know everything I can get my hands on so I can be prepared. Logan was a smart man and was very good at covering his tracks. But he also had an ego the size of Texas. He would have been protecting his family in the only way he knows how. Extra security, phone taps.... get whatever you find Dix and I want it emailed to me by this time tomorrow evening, including any interesting phone conversations."

"You got it boss!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Alec was dressed in coveralls and a baseball cap, carrying a tool box as he walked into the Cale Industries building. He smiled at the female security guard behind the front desk. It was 9:00 pm, when most workers would have left for home.

He was glad to see a female security guard. They're usually easier prey for his charms.

"Hi there." he smiled and she stared blankly back at him. OK, charm is not working! "I am from Walker Technologies and was told that there have been complaints about a couple of our copy machines not working properly? I'm here to fix that."

"Badge number?" the woman asked, not looking like she believed him for a minute.

"094-153-2598"

"May I SEE the badge?" she asked, none too politely

He unclipped the fake badge off his pocket, showing it to her. Luke did a fine job in finding the name and badge number of an employee. Alec took a picture of himself with his digital camera and used the tools Luke sent him to make a badge.

She picked up a wand scanner and scanned the bar code on the badge, still not smiling, still didn't seem to believe him either. He caught her name from her name tag

"Well... Wanda." Alec smiled his charming smile, "Must be a slow night tonight huh? I frankly don't like working nights either, but I'm on call until midnight and would like to get those copiers going before then."

"You're not going anywhere until it shows that you're cleared." she muttered as she stared at the computer.

Alec saw in her eyes that she figured out that the badge was a fake. Cursing under his breath, he blurred around the desk and caught Wanda in a chokehold, cutting off her windpipe

He counted down from 8 seconds and released her, allowing her to slump over the desk, unconscious. Alec quickly deleted all camera footage of him entering the building and talking to "Wanda".

He patted the unconcious Wanda on the back, muttering while making sure no one saw him, "Sleep tight sweetheart."

He made sure she just looked like she fell asleep at her post, then walked quickly to the back of the building to the service elevators

"I'm in." Alec said into the mike on his collar. He had an earpiece in his ear as well that most would think was just a hearing aid.

"Good, now take the elevator to the 36th floor."

"Penthouse suite, here I come." Alec muttered as he stepped into the elevator and punched the button he needed.

"Luke, are you looping the footage of the empty hallway and elevator?"

"You're all clear. As far as anyone watching monitors is concerned, you'll be a ghost!"

"Ha ha, very funny." Alec muttered.

"Well it's why you X5s are so special, right? You got the looks, you got the speed and power, and you got people like me that watch your ass."

"You're a good guy Luke, I appreciate it. You were meant to do a lot more than digging trenches."

"Thanks Alec!" Luke sounded really pleased, "So, what now?"

"Stand by until I need you."

"Roger that!"

Alec, still playing the part of the handyman, stepped off the elevator and walked through the palatial hallway reserved for executives like he belonged there. He pulled out an ID badge from his pocket that he stole from the guard, Wanda, downstairs.

He scanned it over the infrared light and the doors slid open.

"Bingo!" Alec muttered and walked in, looking around carefully for cameras and motion sensor alarms.


	7. Chapter 7

_**(note to all - very mature rating on this chapter due to smut. Again I say, if you are under 18, move on to another story! If you're bothered by smut and over 18, skip this chapter. Please read and review!)**_

Max leaned against the door after Alec left, memories flooding her from the past.

They talked to each other tonight like they used to before she married Logan, when she used to seek Alec's advice regarding the running of Terminal City. Even back then, she always knew she could lean on him, even if she did give him a hard time once in a while.

Max pushed herself away from the door with a sigh after seeing Alec drive off. Who was she kidding? She knew in the back of her mind she was attracted to Alec back then, but because of her "relationship" with Logan, she felt she had to stay loyal and true to him.

That night of her heat cycle, four years ago, she went to Crash for the sole purpose of running into Alec. She knew he would be there. He was at Crash almost every night flirting with other women.

That night was the most incredible sex she ever had. That's when she realized something she never realized before. Having sex with ordinary men during a heat cycle just took the edge off her heat, but having sex with an X-5 male during her heat satisfied her in a way she never felt before.

And if she was honest with herself, she really missed that feeling of satisfaction.

Pouring herself another glass of red wine, she sat on the couch, curled her feet up and thought back...

_Alec threw her against the wall in one of Crash's storage closets, kissing her roughly, pinning her body against the wall with his body, making her very aware of how turned on he was. The closet had no light except what peeked through the bottom of the heavy curtain. However, the two X-5's didn't need lighting to see._

_Max ripped open Alec's shirt, causing buttons to fly everywhere while his hands caressed over her thighs, cupping her ass finally reaching underneath her skirt._

_"Fuck!" Alec exclaimed in delighted surprise, "No panties Maxie?" He licked the shell of her ear as she nibbled his neck, moaning and whimpering when she felt his fingers stroking her between her legs. "Naughty girl. Where the hell have you been all my life?"_

_Max knew from experience that his fingers will only stoke the flames higher. She learned very early on that she couldn't have an orgasm without a male inside her during her heat cycle. Which is why masturbating wouldn't do any good for her... and Alec finger-fucking her would just drive her crazy._

_Apparently Alec knew that as well and seemed to be purposely driving to the brink of madness. She felt a moment of jealousy, wondering just how many X-5 females he had been with in the past in order to learn how to do this? _

_His mouth trailed down her neck, to her shoulder. With his teeth, he pulled a strap off her shoulder and began licking and nipping her shoulder, back to her neck, then down to the bodice of her dress. He reached up with his free hand, pulled the strap down her arm and yanked down the bodice to exposing her right breast. He licked at the nipple that was pointing straight at him, making it tighten and crinkle more, the hand between her legs increasing the pressure as he rubbed furiously against her clit._

_Max was almost sobbing, "Alec! Fuck me! NOW!"_

_"Beg me!" Alec said looking at her with pure determination. She opened her eyes and gasped. His pupils were dilated and looked animalistic, primal, turning her on far more than she has ever been turned on._

_His hand simply cupped her sex this time, sending warmth from the palm of his hand and keeping her teetering on the edge, causing her to want him more every second. She wanted to make him fuck her, but at the same time she kind of liked the fact he was taking charge. She was always in charge in the past._

_One of his fingers moved slowly through her slippery folds, circling around her sensitive clit with the lightest touch, making her twitch and gasp again. He repeated the action, leaned forward and lightly kissed her, then his mouth hovered above hers. They were so close they were sharing each other's breath, both panting._

_"Beg me Maxie... you get only what you ask for."_

_"You're as desparate for me as I am for you..."_

_"Right, and I've had a lot more training in self-control. I could keep you on edge all night if I wanted to and you know it." He speared a hand through her hair and to the back of her neck, tilted her head up a bit, his body firmly against hers, his right hand between them still lightly stroking her pussy, making her bite her lip and moan._

_"I know this feels good to you, but I swear I can make it even better... beg me for it Max. You won't regret it."_

_Pride was vanishing quickly as she struggled within herself. With a last fleeting thought of Logan, she pushed him out of her mind with a mental "Forgive me" and looked Alec straight in the eyes._

_"Please Alec..."_

_He fingered light circles over her clit again, smiling at the desparate squirming he was causing, the strangled sound of her voice, knowing HE was causing this reaction from her. "Please Alec what, Maxie? Tell me what you want me to do."_

_"Please fuck me." Forget pride, she was fucking desparate now! Her words came out on a whimper._

_Quickly, his hands left her for a few seconds as he unbuckled his belt, unfastened his pants and dropped pants and boxers to his ankles._

_Max moaned when she looked down at his engorged cock that was aimed at her... there was no other word to describe it but AIMED. She licked her lips, anticipating the moment that he'd take her with that beautiful looking, fully aroused dick._

_Alec raised her head back up, smirking at her, knowing what she wants and what she was thinking about as she looked at him. His voice was nearly a growl, "I want you Max. In every way imaginable, starting with you against this wall." His hands cupped her ass again and then lifted her as her legs automatically encircled his waist, placing her slick heat against his hot flesh. She rubbed herself against him, stoking the fire higher within her and hoping she was doing the same for him._

_He kissed her, thrusting his tongue inside her mouth as he flexed his hips and drove himself home in one single thrust. She was aroused to such a fever pitch that she came on that stroke alone. Alec swallowed her cries with his mouth, keeping them muffled from the crowd outside as he slowly pulled out, then flexed his hips in a hard stroke, pushing himself back in, setting off another orgasm within her._

_Finally, she was scratching his back and begging against his lips for more as he increased the pace and rhythm, setting her off again and again. She successfully had five total orgasms before he finally let himself go, cumming hard inside her._

_The feel of his seed within her caused Max to cry out in pleasure as the fiercest orgasm overtook her. Alec kissed her again to muffle the sound, his rhythm becoming erratic as he continually ejaculated into his mate._

_When it was over, he fell to his knees, Max was kneeling on his lap, facing him, trying to catch her breath while Alec sounded like he was doing the same._

_He held her close and then felt that he was becoming aroused again while still inside her._

_"Max... your place or mine? We can't stay in this closet forever."_

_"Yours."_

Max drained her wineglass as she began to realize something. She jumped up and grabbed a calendar, mentally calculating.

This is why she's really been so hormonal and edgy... she is about to start her heat cycle. Within the next week or so.

The timing could not have been worse. She just buried her husband, her son is missing, her best friend is in the hospital...

And yet during her heat she'll be in close proximity to Alec.

She really didn't want him like this, where the only time they have sex was through heat cycles. She decided to try and ride it out. Usually the first day or two, she could make herself get by on cold showers and lots of push-ups and crunches. Day three was when she had the most problems. Sometimes she can ride it out, other times she couldn't.

She may need to put herself in lockdown. It was way too early in their relationship to go through this again.

But she was pretty sure, knowing herself and her weaknesses, that she would more than likely let Alec have anything he wanted.


	8. Chapter 8

Free falling from a thirty story building was never one of Alec's favorite things to do on a friday night. He could come up with a lot more interesting ways to fill his time, and it usually involved a woman.

But to get away from the Cale Industries security, he really didn't have much of a choice as he was free falling through the air between two office buildings, the ground getting closer and closer to him. He knew the bunjee cable that was attached to his harness would jerk any moment and he was preparing himself for that.

God, how he hated heights, and he especially hated having to jump off of said heights. This whole crazy idea had better pay off or by God, heads were going to roll!

The bunjee cord stopped him about twenty feet from the ground and bounced him back up. He was prepared for this and rode the jump back up, scanning around for something to grab.

He found a balcony about seven floors up on a neighboring apartment complex as he was about to go back down again. He lunged, reached out quickly and grabbed the railing, then flipped himself over the railing, landing on his feet on the balcony floor. He quickly thumb-loosened the C-clamp and opened it, releasing it from his harness and letting the rope go to swing between the buildings. Then he turned to the glass doors and slid them open.

He knew this apartment was empty, which was why he kind of aimed for this particular balcony. He quickly slipped into the shadows and pulled off the baseball cap and harness, then unzipped his coveralls, revealing a black Megadeath t-shirt and black jeans underneath. He pulled out a guitar case that he kept hidden in a front closet of this apartment and opened it up, took out the guitar and a couple of other items, then pulled up the false bottom of the case. He tossed everything he nabbed from Logan's office out of the backpack and into the case, closed the false bottom, replaced the guitar and closed the case. All within 45 seconds.

Next, he quickly put on the large black wig that he pulled out of the case that he knew probably made him look like the pictures he'd seen from the 20th century of Alice Cooper. He pulled off one of his gloves, smeared some white make-up on his face and neck. He replaced the glove, and he reached into the closet and pulled out his trenchcoat, putting it on and completing the black ensemble, all the way down to the black boots he had worn all evening.

His purpose was to look goth-like and nothing like himself as he clipped a small gold stud on his nose. He checked himself out in the small mirror of the entryway, satisfied that it was good enough. He picked up the guitar case in one hand, his clothing, empty backpack, cap and harness were rolled underneath his other arm and stepped out into the hallway, walking to one end, directly to the incinerator. There, he dropped all but his guitar case into the incinerator, turned to the stairs and walked casually down them like he belonged there.

The whole thing took all of four minutes, a little too long to him, but it seemed to work out anyway, as he made his way down the stairs one floor at a time until he reached the second floor and heard men barreling in and shouting orders.

Once he made it to the bottom floor, one of the Cale Industries security team stopped him to ask if he saw a man about six feet tall, about 175 pounds wearing gray coveralls, a baseball cap and dark blond hair?

"Whoaa!" Alec said in his best Keanu Reeves impression, "It's like you read my friggin' mind, man! He was runnin' up those stairs like some bat outta hell."

"When?" the security guy asked impatiently.

Alec carefully scratched his head, like he was thinking, "Uh... I dunno! About... a minute or two ago, maybe?"

The man pushed Alec out of the way as he yelled to the team to head for the roof. Alec gave his best impression of Keanu's laugh as he called out, "Dude, there's no way you'll catch up to him! Huh, huh, huh! He ran by so fast it was like..." he does a slight head shake, then "Whoa! You blink! And he's gone. Just like** that **man!" he told them as he snapped his fingers. "It was friggin' awesome!"

Once the security guys were gone, Alec smirked, shook his head and muttered, "Idiots." as he walked back outside, to his rented sport utility vehicle and got in, driving away without a care in the world.


	9. Chapter 9

**One week later**

Alec groaned because his entire body felt extremely sore.. He was tempted to just fall back into peaceful slumber where there was no pain, but someone calling his name wouldn't allow that. His brow furrowed and he winced as he opened his eyes, the overhead lights seemed terribly bright, bringing on a migraine.

"Alec!" Max called from nearby. Alec quickly took in his surroundings. He was in a metal cage, the cold metal beneath him doing nothing for his aching body. There were other cages holding other people around him, and his eyes finally settled on Max, who was in the cage next to him. She was on her knees, holding the bars, a worried look on her face.

"Alec? How are you feeling? Are you okay?"

Alec pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned back against the bars, using them as a form of back rest.

"Just dandy." Alec remarked sarcastically, blinking to help his eyes adjust. He could smell something different in the air as well, which now brought him to full alert. Pheromones and testosterone were extremely strong in the air. And even though he obviously suffered some injuries, one part of his anatomy was at full, uncomfortable attention.

Then he realized he felt this before around Max. The last time they were together during her heat cycle.

The puzzle pieces fell into place and his head swiveled to Max, his eyes narrowed on her.

"Um... Max? Not sure you realize the danger you're in right now, but..."

She staged whispered with wide eyes, "I know!" She sighed and rolled her eyes, "I'm in..."

"Heat. Shit Max! After all these years, don't you know how dangerous it is to go out in public in your condition?"

He had to provoke her, he had to get her angry, because otherwise, he knew he'd tear these bars apart to get to her, probably within the next twenty-four hours.

But then he noticed the others in cells as well. They were all male, which explained the heavy testosterone in the air. They were all restless, and zooming his vision on each of them, they all had barcodes.

All X-5 males. This was just fucking PERFECT!

Max folded her arms across her chest defensively,"Forgive me for thinking I had a lead on my son! Heat was the last thing on my mind at that moment."

Alec remembered now. Roger was staking out a chinese restaurant when White showed up and went straight to the back of the restaurant where the employees and management were. Roger then called Alec. They had just arrived behind White when all hell broke loose.

Max was tasered first by one of the employees. He now realized that the antsy feeling he felt as he accompanied her was due to heat, because he reacted like any male trying to protect his mate. It took three taser wands to take him down.

And now he felt it all over, the sore areas on his ribs and in different muscles making him uncomfortable. He hated getting tased with a passion and wished they were outlawed, but not that it would stop anyone.

"Well now, we're stuck in some kind of dungeon of a place with... what is it? Eight other X-5 males that want a piece of you?"

"How is that my fault?"

"Max! As soon as you realized you were going into the first stages of heat, you should have put yourself in lockdown and let me handle finding Keegan. I know that sticks in your craw to let someone else handle the job of finding your son. If you would have been in lockdown, we wouldn't be here."

"Correction Pretty Boy. If I would have been in lockdown _you_ would have been captured and I'd have to save your ass yet again!"

"Well now who's gonna save_ our _asses? Let me ask you another question Max. Besides me, have you ever been around an X-5 male while in heat?"

"No, you're the only one."

Alec's eyes glittered at the other males, "You hear that boys? She's mine. Make one move toward her and it's the last move you make!"

"Alec! What the..."

He hissed, "Shut up Maxie, if you know what's good for you, you better choose one of us or they'll all take you as soon as they get the chance. And when I say 'take you', I hope to God you know what I mean."

A male next to Alec answered matter-of-factly, "You know that doesn't really matter, unless the males can smell your scent on her, which we don't, she's fair game to all."

Max's eyes widened as she looked around Alec to see who it was in the dark corner that spoke.

"Krit?" Max asked, hope in her voice.

"It's me baby sister." Krit grinned from his cage, leaning closer to where the light caught his visage. "And I won't let anything happen to you."

Alec looked to the right at this new X-5 male who seemed to know Max pretty well, and then back at Max who seemed thrilled to see this guy.

"Ah yes! You're another one of Max's 'siblings'. One of the 09'ers that escaped, right? And let's not forget, helped her blow up the DNA lab."

"Ben, you're not getting anywhere near Max. I'll take you out."

Alec smirked, "That again! I'm not Ben. I'm his twin. X5-494, aka Alec." Alec nodded his head toward Krit, "Pleasure to meet you, NOT. And by the way, you're not getting near her either."

"Don't I get a choice in the matter?", Max asked, somewhat miffed by the male posturing.

"No." both males answered, causing Max's spine to straighten and her teeth to clench.

"I can take care of myself anyway. I've done it numerous times. As a matter of fact, I'm an old hat at this by now."

Alec snickered, "Boy are you naive! Max, think back a moment will ya? Remember how I reacted to your heat cycle? You'll get the same response from all of these males. Which will mean I will ultimately have to fight them. When we were last together, there was no competition. As a matter of fact..." Trailing off, Alec leaned forward and recognized one of the males directly in front of him, about ten feet across the room in his own cage, "729, is that you?" The shock on the male's face caused Alec to bark, "Answer me when I'm talking to you soldier!"

"Sir! Yes sir!" the male stood quickly at attention and saluted, causing shock on Krit and Max's face, and some pride on Alec's as he struggled to get up. He stood as tall as he could and ordered, "Report!"

"We're underground sir. This is a cave that belongs to the Familiar Conclave."

"Where are we, soldier? What state?"

"Wyoming, sir!"

Alec turned to Max with an eyeroll, "Oh lovely! We're close to home! Wonder if we're in Gillette or if it's close by?"

"Gillette Wyoming is 60 clicks south-southwest SIR!"

"At ease soldier. I think some people around here are beginning to understand the hierarchy."

Alec turned to smirk at Max, who looked thoroughly confused as the other male sat in the corner of his cage. Alec shrugged like it didn't matter, trying to ignore the soreness in his shoulder, "I was ranking lieutenant at Manticore. Old habits die hard."

He passed a smug look to Krit, knowing this male would probably be his main competition. But he noticed something about Krit that was different than all the other males. Krit seemed more at ease with himself, but watchful and wary. While everyone else seemed twitchy due to Max's rising pheromone levels. This male could be just really sure of himself.

Krit ignored the smug male X-5 as he looked around him to Max, "Max, it would be a really good idea if you tell me out of your own mouth which male you prefer."

Not allowing Max to answer, Alec practically snarled in derision, "What? So you can protect her from waaaay over there?"

Now Krit stood up, grabbed the bars and stared his new nemesis down, "You'd be surprised what I'm capable of."

Alec copied Krit's stance from his side of the bars, "Is that right?"

"Let's put it this way Lieutenant. If she doesn't want you..." Krit leaned closer and gritted out, "watch your back, fair warning."

"Well! Isn't this a touching family reunion!"

White's voice carried from the doorway as he walked in flanked by three Familiar guards. He walked straight to Max's cage, standing before her with a self-satisfied grin.

"You seem a little flushed 452. Breathing a little irregular? Hormones running rampant within you?" He turned away from her and addressed the rest of the caged X-5s. "Seems to me most of you are ready to rumble huh?" White snickered at his own joke. "Well, I'll give you all a chance to do just that."

"Where's my son?", Max asked, standing up and facing White through the bars. White turned back to her and swaggered to her cage, bent over and remarked, "Don't worry 452. You'll get him back as soon as you tell me where _my _son is."

"I... don't... know. I've told you that before and I'm telling you again. I have no idea where your son was taken."

"Then I suggest if you want to see _your_ son again that you start jogging that memory of yours, because until then, I'm raising your son as mine."

Alec spoke up from his cage, "Gee White? Why would you do that if you consider all of us as nothing better than animals?"

White smirked and faced Alec, walking over toward his cage, but making sure he had enough distance that Alec couldn't grab him, "I like to think of him as a 'pet project' if you will. It would be the ultimate revenge to raise her son to kill and hate YOU wouldn't it?"


	10. Chapter 10

Max began pacing her cell like a caged tiger. She hated to admit to herself that all the attention she was getting from the males was flattering. But it was the first time she caught a true glimpse of the primal side of the X-5's when it came to mating cycles.

She felt no lust toward Krit, which she found odd. His presence in the room was soothing, protective even. Usually by now she wanted to jump any male that held the equipment she needed. But she puzzled to herself as to why she felt nothing remotely sexual toward Krit?

Alec was a completely different story. He was pacing about as badly as Max herself. At times Max caught herself watching Alec prowl in the cage, seeing power that was barely leashed. Now that did turn her on. And it frustrated her that so soon after Logan died, she was lusting after another male.

Alec kept a sharp eye on all other males in the room, the challenge in his eyes clear. No one was getting past him to get to Max.

But even as Alec was spiraling down to a more primal level, his mind clicked on the fact that Krit was not pacing, he was not prowling, he just lounged in the corner of his cage. He was watchful and wary, but appeared completely relaxed.

Alec just couldn't grasp why that was.

"Take a picture, it will last longer." Krit remarked, catching Alec's stare and holding it.

Alec never broke the eye contact, but he did sigh, "Okay, I will just come right out and ask. Why aren't you climbing the walls right now? We're all ready to fight, and you're... well... not!"

Krit shrugged, "I guess she's just not my type. Not in that way anyway."

Alec rolled his eyes, "Right. Whatever. There's more to it than that." Krit just shot him a look then dismissed him, watching the other males carefully.

"Oh hell no! You didn't just do that." Alec growled, grabbing the bars between his cage and Krit's, "It is not a good idea to dismiss me, you fuckin' 09er!"

This caught Krit's attention enough to look to Alec with a raised brow, "Careful there Lieutenant." Krit's voice was quiet, but slightly goading, "Your weakness is showing."

Alec's eyes narrowed, but some part of his brain realized this 09er was right.

And it just crawled all over Alec to admit that, even to himself. A soldier never shows weakness to his enemies. And everyone in the room knew Max was his weakness.

Krit stood up and leaned on his own bars, facing Alec, appearing relaxed, which made Alec want to do something to get rid of the relaxed air around the other X-5. Because it simply wasn't fair that this stranger was all calm, cool and collected when he was ready to pounce…. Something!

"Listen, let's just lay it out on the table." Krit remarked dryly. "I haven't decided if I like you or not. But I can tell out of all the males here, you're the one Max is the most connected to. I can see that. She cares for you. And I gotta respect that."

This surprised Alec. He could respect candor. He just hoped Krit could take what he dishes out as well.

"OK, well on the same note of honesty, I can tell you're not one of those lovesick former brothers of hers, because I am just not in the mood to deal with another Zack."

Krit gave a short laugh, "Zack was our leader, but he always had a soft spot for our Maxie. I heard about him going all gaga over Max and that Ordinary's relationship... what was his name?"

"Logan."

Krit snapped his fingers, "Yeah, that was it. Didn't they get married?"

Alec nodded sadly, "Yeah, but he died just recently. Which is why this whole heat thing with me and her is just..."

"Too soon", Krit nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I can see that."

Max gave a heartfelt sigh, "Would you guys please stop talking about me like I'm not here?"

She was doing push ups, trying to tire herself out in order to deal with her rising hormones, but Alec noticed that seemed to make things worse in the room. The smell of her perspiration on top of her pheromones and watching her push her body up and down made Alec groan and caught the attention of the rest of the males.

Her clothes were more feminine than they were four years ago. Possibly due to Logan's influence, or just a need to blend in with the wealthier crowd. She wore a peasant blouse/skirt combo that made her appear more feminine. Although Alec, at this moment, wouldn't really care what she was wearing. Or even better, what she was NOT wearing. The long skirt kept her legs decently covered but outlined the shape of her rear in a really nice way as she continued her push up exercises, making Alec more and more uncomfortable.

Krit's voice was slightly amused as he watched Alec and Max, "Um... Maxie? I think you need to stop that."

Without ceasing the push ups, she looked toward Krit curiously, "Why?"

Krit watched Alec approach the other side of his cage, the side where Max's cage was. Alec leaned on the bars with his arms folded and watched her pushing up and down as he murmured, "Damn, I'm really jealous of that cage floor right now."

"THAT is what I mean." Krit snickered, "Maxie you have a roomful of lovesick puppies, and 494 is having it the worst. Your sweat is making everything worse. So do as your big brother says and please... stop!"

Max stopped and levered herself on her knees. Alec squatted next to her in his cage and Max saw how Alec's eyes began to appear catlike. He just stared at her and she stared back, her breath caught, she was completely mesmerized and wide eyed.

She caught him licking his lower lip which caused an answering whimper from her. Then his low growl of, "Soon!", he quickly stood and paced away from her again, then began shadow boxing in his cage, trying to work through his need to... well, fuck.

White chose that moment to enter with his goons. The transgenics within could hear a lot of loud talking and cheering outside the door, but the sound cut off as soon as the heavy door closed.

"Alright freaks, let's get this over with. Bruce? I need you to get 494 out of his cage."

Alec almost crouched in a fighting stance, just in case.

"Relax 494, we have no intention of hurting you... yet."

"What're your intentions?" Alec asked warily.

"I'm giving you your chance to fight for your mate... every time you win a match, you get to stay in 452's cage with her. As a matter of fact, that's where the winner goes after each round."

"What's the catch?" Alec asked, eyes narrowing..

"There is no catch... oh!" White raised a finger as an afterthought, "Except in order to consider it a 'win', it's a fight to the death."

Krit was pretty quick on the uptake as he answered, "You are having us exterminate each other."

"There's that genius intellect I hear so much about!" White answered sardonically. "See? Doesn't matter how it works out. I always win. Oh... you!" White pointed at Krit as he walked toward him. Krit's chin was up in defiance, fists clenched at his sides as White looked through a manila folder he held.

"It appears 471 that your DNA is identical to 452's... all except for the Y chromosome that is." White looked up at Krit and smirked, "But you knew that didn't you?"

Krit just answered, "Go to hell."

White caught Max's surprised stare, noticing that he did catch one X-5 off guard. He walked back to Max and asked, "You didn't know that did you? That this... thing." He gestured at Krit, "Is just the male version of you? No junk DNA either." White walked back toward Krit and asked sarcastically, "You wouldn't have any strange markings showing up on your person now would you?"

Krit just snorted, "Is that your way of asking me to get naked? No thanks! I don't swing that way."

Alec, guffawed, then tried to choke back the laughter when he saw that Krit's remark hit it's mark, turning White's face a shade of red. Alec didn't know if it was embarrassment or anger, but it was funny anyway.

"Believe me 471, if we wanted you naked, it would be on a slab about to be sliced and diced. Unless you can kill this one..." his head motioned to Alec, "I am not interested in anything you can offer."

Alec watched carefully. He'd hate to kill Max's literal brother, as it turned out. But if it got him to Max's side, right now he would do it.

Even if she did hate him later.

"Go fuck yourself!" Krit answered.

"I like that attitude 471... it might come in handy later. But right now..." The goons went into Alec's cell and with three Familiars armed with taser wands, Alec knew there was no way he could fight them and win. One asked him, "Are you coming peacefully, or are we gonna do this the hard way?" The goon pressed a button on the wand and electric sparks came out. Alec gulped.

"I'm coming." His hands were up in surrender as he stepped out with them. They had him stand center stage in front of Max's cage.

"Alec?"

Alec turned back to Max and smiled his trademark cocky smirk, "Don't worry about me. I'll be back."

"Who wants to challenge 494 for the female? Any takers?" White asked.

Most of the males bowed their heads as Alec searched the room for anyone that would dare try to usurp his alpha male status. No one stepped up and Alec shrugged.

"Guess you're outta luck Ames. Looks like I get the prize!"

"Not so fast... if no one volunteers, I'll choose one myself."

"I'll do it!"


	11. Chapter 11

"Who said that?", White demanded as he spun around in the direction of the voice from a corner of the cave. Alec narrowed his eyes toward his new challenger and groaned inwardly when he realized who it was a split second before White did.

"You!" White pointed his taser wand to a cage in the back corner across from Krit.

"That's right," a deep voice grumbled, "I'll take 494 on. We have a score to settle."

"Tiny, give it a rest!" Alec groaned. "You know you don't want to fight me. We've been through this before already!"

"Who is he?" Max hissed through the bars as Alec backed up a little closer to her to protect her. They took comfort in each other's proximity as White opened the cage of one of the largest males Max had ever seen. Her eyes widened slightly in disbelief. She had never seen someone so massive in her entire life! She'd heard of these guys, but never saw one up close before.

The largely built X5 had not been able to stand up straight in the cage because the cage itself was only about six feet tall. This guy was probably about six feet, eight inches tall, about three hundred pounds of pure muscle, making him look like a professional wrestler. Both Max and Alec had to crane their necks to look up at him. "Tiny" flexed his massive shoulders and popped his neck, even did a couple of knee bends, freeing his muscles from being cramped up in the small cage for so long.

Tiny shot a dangerous look at Alec as he bent over to stretch his hamstrings. "What's the matter, 494? Having flashbacks from the last time I beat your ass?"

Alec's eyes narrowed dangerously as he answered, "That's not how I remember it. I remember three of your guys holding me down while you beat me up. You were too chicken to take me on one on one."

"Well now's my chance, little man." Tiny growled as he stood up to his full height and cracked his knuckles. "And once I'm done with you, I'll have your bitch as a consolation prize."

Max sniffed as she crossed her arms defiantly. "I prefer my men with more brains than brawn. Besides who said I was _any_body's consolation prize?"

"Max…not helping," Alec murmured in a sing-song voice so low only Max could hear him.

"Besides…Max goaded the big guy through the bars of her cage, "I heard Manticore pumped you boys so full of steroids that you have no balls left!"

_Shit!_ Alec's eyes widened as Tiny lunged toward them. Max's words were just the thing to spark the big guy's rage. Alec was about to take a fighting stance right then and there, the primal need to protect his mate coming to the forefront, but there was no need to do anything yet. The four Familiars in the room stepped in between Alec and Tiny, including White himself, and used their tasers to back Tiny up to the back wall again. Maybe two Familiars would have been equal in strength to Tiny, but four of them could definitely overpower the big lug.

White chuckled, amused by the whole show of male posturing. He gave Tiny a pat on the shoulder, "Save it, big guy, save it for the ring."

Worried, Max hissed through the bars at the man in front of her, worry and concern in her voice, "Alec? He'll kill you!"

"Nah!" Alec waved that statement away like it was an annoying gnat. "You were gone from Manticore by the time these big guys came out to play. I can take him. I know a few of their weaknesses."

He could still smell Max's pheromones in the air, but he also detected something else. Fear? For him?

He looked over his shoulder at her, making eye contact, trying to reassure her without words. Then he turned to her, reached through the bars and grabbed the back of her head, pulling her mouth swiftly to him for a kiss.

Kissing her through the bars, Max reached through the bars to pull Alec toward her as Alec reached his free hand through the bars to pull Max toward him by the waist.

White gave an order to one of his goons, "Frankie, go stop that before I get sick!"

Frankie immediately stalked over and pulled Alec away from Max forcibly, causing them both to growl in irritation. Alec's eyes flashed at the Familiar, teeth bared.

Frankie narrowed his eyes down at Alec. "Wanna try it? You'll be fighting with two broken legs if you do, kitty cat!"

Somehow, Alec found it within himself to let rational thought come to the forefront and gain some control since he was now a few feet away from Max's lips and body. Just giving Frankie a stony look, he turned to Tiny and growled, "Bring it on! I'm ready!"

* * *

The crowd of Familiars was huge in the auditorium. There was a cage standing center stage with bright lights spotlighting it so that everyone in the oval shaped auditorium wouldn't miss a moment of the action.

The crowd was buzzing with excitement. One of their most hated transgenics, X5-494 was more than likely going to meet a horribly painful end, and everyone was ready to see that happen.

And to top that off, it would bring anguish to the chosen one, X5-452, which would be a lot more fun than killing her outright.

It was even said that 452 herself was in some animalistic heat stage. Many Familiars made off-color jokes about this. Just goes to show the filthy animals they really were. And they needed to be eradicated into extinction!

From all studies the Familiars have ever done about the animal kingdom, having a female in heat around two alpha males would cause the males to fight for the right to breed the female.

And if the same is true for these X5s, then it's going to be a fight worth watching.

Bets were being placed with ten-to-one odds on the big one they call Tiny, X5-629. There were still some that bet on X5-494, taking a chance on winning a big pot, knowing his history with the female in heat that was in question, and his fighting skills.

The announcer jumped into the cage and a microphone was lowered to him from the ceiling.

"Ladies and gentlemen! You will see the fight of the century tonight! Not only one fight, but several. We will see firsthand true, animalistic fighting to the death, right before our very eyes, eradicating these transgenics once and for all. You don't want to miss this! So without further ado, we begin with our first contender, standing six feet, eight inches, and weighing in at three hundred pounds, X5-629!"

Two doors slid aside on the far wall and a spotlight picked up Tiny as he walked through. Cheering sounded out through the crowd, but all Tiny did was walk straight toward the cage and enter it. He glared at the crowd, then raised his fists in the air and gave a mighty roar, working the crowd into a frenzy.

"Our next contender, we all love to hate him. Almost needs no introduction. Standing six feet tall, weighing in at one hundred seventy-five pounds, X5-494!"

Alec's doors were on the opposite side of Tiny's as they slid back and he walked out. Hisses and boos sounded all over the stadium as Alec glared over the crowd. He saw the priestess sitting regally in a private box. Using his enhanced vision, he zoomed in on her and caught her eye. He stopped walking, then gave her the finger, making sure the highest-ranking person in this building knew he didn't give a shit. Then he continued to the cage.

Both fighters were shirtless and wearing whatever pants they were captured in. In this case, both were wearing jeans. Not the best pants for movement or fighting, but it was either that or go naked. Alec stood in the opposite corner from Tiny, bouncing on the balls of his feet and warming up.

"Prepare to die little man!" Tiny shouted across the ring. All Alec did was smirk.

"We'll see about that, big guy." Alec answered. The announcer motioned for both fighters to meet in the middle of the ring. Once they were a couple of feet from each other and facing one another, the announcer laid out the rules.

"Well animals, rules are, there are no rules. Do whatever you want until one dies. You just can't leave the cage till we tell you. You will be locked in from the outside. And begin fighting when the bell rings. The bell will not ring again to end the fight until someone's dead. Got it? Good."

The announcer walked away, and Alec noticed a movement on the outer fringes of the crowd, just past where Tiny stood. Alec narrowed his eyes and noticed White dragging Max, who was shackled at the wrists and ankles, into an enclosed booth.

"What the hell is he doing?" Alec muttered.

Tiny turned, and then narrowing his eyes in confusion, he couldn't help but wonder the same thing.

Max was enclosed in a glass cubicle and White locked her in.

Tiny grunted, "Probably just showing us what we're fighting for."

Alec couldn't believe they were being civil when one of them was about to die, but Alec answered, "This is White we're talking about, Tiny. There's something more to it than that."

Suddenly, both males could smell it. Max's pheromones. The Familiars in the crowd didn't have the same sense of smell as the transgenics, so they wouldn't notice the heat pheromones in the air, but the males sure could. Alec could see the air vents above the cube Max was placed within and now understood why they could smell the pheromones.

That's when they both knew what White was up to. He was trying to enrage them both even more for the fight. Both X5 males were then taken to that animalistic, primitive level where the need to breed outweighed most logic. Tiny turned his head back to Alec and growled low in his throat. Alec, in response, did the same as they circled each other.

Alec's eyes going to Max's one last time, he saw her pleading, fearful look for him as she pressed against the glass to watch. Turning his head back, he placed full concentration on his opponent. Then he heard his signal.

DING!


	12. Chapter 12

The opponents began circling each other within the cage, growling low, waiting for just the perfect moment to pounce.

Tiny may have brawn, but Alec knew his brain was pretty small…or at least that's the way the idiot always acted back at Manticore. He was simply a big bully that liked to push around the lighter, stealthier X series like Alec.

Tiny had especially loved to pick on Alec for some reason. Alec never could figure out why, but he was finally forced to fight Tiny in the courtyard to get him to leave him the hell alone.

He beat Tiny that day, although he didn't come away completely unscathed. He had a black eye and a broken wrist, along with numerous contusions. But he felt he got his message across.

But Tiny cornered him later in the gym with his gang. Frankly, they nearly killed him. They beat him to within an inch of his life before the guards got wind of what was going on.

Lydecker himself had Tiny placed in isolation and then later in Psy Ops. As far as Alec knew, Tiny was still in Psy Ops when Max burned down Manticore.

Blinking to bring himself back to the present, it was just in the nick of time. Tiny lunged forward with his arms outstretched and a roar. Alec ducked under Tiny's arms and rolled out of the way quickly, jumping back to his feet. Now behind Tiny, he gave him a kick between the legs, hoping that, despite Tiny's imposing figure, it would disable him like any other red-blooded male.

Unfortunately, it didn't affect Tiny at all, except to enrage him…and to make Alec's foot feel like he kicked a rock! Alec let out a curse, limping and dodging the big man's arms again as he spun around and tried to clothesline Alec. Tiny doesn't exactly have the finesse in his fighting style of the lighter X5s, but Alec could see how the brute force angle works quite well for him. Alec adapts easily, and he's certainly faced down opponents like Tiny before, but he would much rather use proactive moves instead of reactive ones.

Alec tucked and rolled again to avoid Tiny's arm, jumping back to his feet.

"Damn it, Tiny! What do you got under there? A cast iron cup?"

Tiny glanced down at the area in question and chuckled, "Didn't know you swung that way, 494."

This time Tiny swung a massive fist toward Alec. Alec bent back at the waist with his hands behind his head, letting his hands stop his fall on the mat. Taking a page from Max's book, he completed a flip, bringing his foot underneath Tiny's chin in an uppercut, which caused Tiny to stumble back and then spit out teeth and blood.

Alec was back on his feet and began to push his advantage, seeing the red oozing from Tiny's face and the tooth fragments decorating the mat. He punched Tiny right between the eyes repeatedly, causing Tiny to back up a few paces again. Not wincing nearly enough for Alec's liking, he blurred his punches faster into Tiny's face repeatedly. Alec had a moment's thought that he was pretty damn sure his knuckles hurt a lot more than Tiny's face. But hopefully, he'll even that score very soon.

Still, he couldn't help but gloat at the bigger X series. Tiny may not be hurting as much as Alec, but Alec had finally found a virtual foothold.

"Still got that soft spot Tiny? Oh yeah! I remember it!"

Alec knew one of the weaknesses of the larger X series was a soft spot between the eyes that could bring them immense pain. He could never figure out why that was; he came across it accidentally during their first fight, which was incidentally also how he won it.

And how he'll win this one!

Tiny roared in pain and then in a fit of rage, he grabbed Alec by the throat with one beefy hand and began lifting Alec off his feet and above the giant man's head, effectively stopping Alec's assault on his face. Alec flailed and kicked, his oxygen supply cut off. He tried to kick out toward Tiny's face again, but Tiny was smarter than that, keeping Alec just out of reach.

Alec flailed about, his feet unable to touch the ground, his hands trying to pry Tiny's fingers off his throat, but to no avail. Vaguely, he realized he should have seen this coming. Though not the sharpest tool in the shed, even Tiny could recognize the size advantage he had.

Alec realized as his oxygen was slowly depleting that he should thank Manticore for one thing: the ability to go without air for ten minutes. Comes in handy at times like this.

Which meant he now had exactly eight minutes and five seconds to come up with a plan…maybe shorter if Tiny got the big idea to snap his neck. Thankfully, he was too busy playing to the cheering, appreciative crowd.

Alec happened to look over to Max, who was frantically trying to signal him with Manticore sign language.

Understanding her, his mind desperately tried to figure out a way to execute the plan. With Tiny distracted by the cheering fans, he held on to Tiny's arm and began to swing his own body, propelling momentum, then quick as a blink, he brought his knees to his chest and used both booted feet to kick Tiny in the head. This caused Tiny to loosen his grip and drop Alec on the mat as he stumbled back a few steps.

Alec coughed, trying to get some air back into his lungs. A feat that took a few seconds too long. Now looking sufficiently more enraged than before, Tiny bodily picked Alec up, holding him over his head like a rag doll and roared at the crowd. Alec flailed and had nowhere to go, until Tiny threw him across the cage. Alec sailed through the air and cried out, "Oh shit!" as he hit the bars, hard, and slid to the ground in a heap, face down.

"Nice plan, Maxie." he muttered to himself sarcastically. He struggled to get up, but again, Tiny pressed his advantage by placing a big, booted foot between Alec's shoulder blades, keeping him immobile on the mat. Then he grabbed Alec's left arm and yanked it backwards, causing a crack and an involuntary wail from Alec as the pain shot from his shoulder throughout the rest of his body.

This time he heard Max's voice cry out—it was being carried through the vents now.

"Noooooo!" Max yelled, fear and anguish in her voice.

The crowd was on their feet cheering Tiny, seeing that 452 was going through emotional anguish, and 494 was about to die a painful death. Alec wished now more than ever he hadn't succumbed to the need to make any kind of noise when Tiny dislocated his shoulder; maybe if Max hadn't seen him react, she wouldn't have allowed the crowd the satisfaction of more appreciative fodder.

Tiny leaned forward, his boot still on Alec's spine as he spat toward him, "Lights out, 494…your bitch is mine. Now you'll know how I felt when you took my mate back at Manticore!"

"Whoa—What the… WHAT? Alec tried to clear the pain-induced fog in his brain as he answered, "What the hell are you talking about? What mate? I didn't have any of those kinds of relationships at Manticore."

"Remember X5-158?" Tiny growled as he pulled Alec's head back by the hair. Alec clenched his teeth in pain, but uttered no sound other than panting short breaths through clenched teeth.

Alec remembered her then, X5-158…his first assigned breeding partner. She never mentioned the desire to be mated to Tiny or anyone else. But he definitely recalled when they followed their orders; she was completely apathetic and down to business. _Like Manticore wanted Max to be_, Alec thought wryly. Neither he nor 158 got much pleasure out of the experience. Especially considering a perverted guard was watching them.

"Tiny…it was orders. Breeding program."

Tiny placed a knee on his spine this time and wrenched Alec's shoulder again, and Alec couldn't help but yelp like a wounded animal. The crowd cheered louder around them.

Obviously that wasn't going to help his case. "Damn it, Tiny, I didn't know!"

Tiny's mouth was right next to Alec's ear as he grunted, "You took what was rightfully mine! Now I'm going to do the same to you. I just wish that you could watch while I take your bitch just like I had to watch while you took mine!"

TINY was the one watching? All this time, Alec thought it was a guard. Now it was all clicking into place. Manticore was sick like that. They were probably trying to put a rift between 158 and Tiny, and used him, Alec, in the process.

Alec remembered it was 158's first time. She was a virgin, which most Manticore alumni was until their first breeding partner. She did become pregnant, but she miscarried soon afterward. Alec assumed it was because she was not in heat when they "copulated", and the lab techs would have eventually figured that out on their own.

"Tiny…" Alec was panting, trying to breathe through the pain in his shoulder, which felt like it was on fire now. "I swear, if I would have known, I wouldn't have done it."

He wasn't lying—Alec hated nothing more than being used. Especially by Manticore.

Tiny, however, was apparently not privy to this, as he growled, "Bull!"

Alec had had enough now, as he frantically remembered the trick Max used on him at her house during their first sparring match a week ago. Taking another page out of her book, he lowered his head to the mat, looking defeated and causing Tiny to grin just a little bit.

Then Alec brought his head back in a quick maneuver, head-butting Tiny between the eyes as hard as he could. Tiny roared in pain and rolled off Alec, giving Alec the opportunity to get his legs under him and get up, albeit shaking his head a bit to clear it from the impact.

He had one useless arm now, but his legs were still fine, and they were his best assets in fighting. Pushing past the agony in his shoulder as Manticore had trained him to do for years, he held the arm close to his body, breathing hard. Alec brought a foot down hard on Tiny's face again…and again…and again.

With every kick, Alec savagely spit out, "You…will…NOT…touch…MY…Max!"

He finally backed away, leaning on the bars of his cage to gain equilibrium. Then he noticed just outside the cage was a large metal chain. Zooming his vision in on the other end of it several feet away, he realized, miraculously, it wasn't attached to anything. Swearing to himself for not noticing before, he reached through the bars and grabbed the end of the chain that was closest to him. He quickly yanked it toward him just as he could see Tiny laboriously getting back up.

Oh, that wasn't gonna happen. Alec set the chain aside for a moment, made a flying leap into the air, and angled his body feet first toward the big giant, knocking him in the face again. This time it was too much force too quickly: Tiny's eyes rolled back into his head as he fell to the ground, knocked out cold.

The crowd was now booing for the most part. Alec glared at them, not finding the energy to care about them, but still somewhat miffed—_had no one thought he could beat Tiny?_ He walked back over to the chain and dragged it over to his motionless opponent.

Alec knelt down, knowing if he didn't kill Tiny, then Tiny would kill him. Already he knew his time was limited; Tiny was unconscious for now, but he wouldn't be for long. It really didn't take a cage "grudge" match to prove that Alec would be toast if he let Tiny wake up. Using one hand, Alec wrapped the chain several times around Tiny's neck, emotionless, and threw the other end over the top of the cage, making it loop until he could jump up with his good right hand and grab the end.

Then, using all his weight, he yanked hard and promptly snapped Tiny's neck. The sound was enough for even the crowd to know that Tiny was effectively dead. For Alec's part, he had twisted, crushed and broken enough vertebrae to know when the deed was done. It wasn't necessarily a fact he was proud of, but in situations like this, it came in handy.

Suddenly, the Conclave was quiet. But not for long—at the sight of their fallen combatant, they resumed their jeers and boos, which echoed throughout the room.

Alec didn't care. He was and always would be 494: trained killing machine, hunter, protector. Forever the efficient soldier, fighting to survive no matter the costs, until his last breath.

But he was also Alec: friend, leader, brother. And rightful mate to X5-452…Max. Breathing deeply the pheromone scented air, he met her eyes and they both knew the truth. She was HIS and no one else's…ever again. He lost her to Logan once, and he wouldn't let her get away again. It didn't matter if he had to fight a thousand Tinys; he would take the dislocations, the oxygen deprivation, all of it, again and again, if it meant keeping Max by his side, safe and sound.


	13. Chapter 13

_Here's another chapter. PLEASE read and review. I get about 400 hits and maybe 1 review. Good or bad, like it or disappointed by it, tell me so!_

_Also, a big shout out to two people that help me immensely with my DA fics. One is Max33, who has made all kinds of suggestions, has helped me get the creative juices flowing and frankly unblock the writer's block. She's been a great person to bounce plot ideas off of and I'm eternally grateful for her help._

_The other is Written_in_dreams, my awesome and spectacular beta reader that catches the goofs I didn't see, corrects my puntuation and spelling and grammar, etc. She has also been super in encouraging me in my fics as well. Thanks so much guys!_

* * *

All caged X5s were watching the beginning of the fight between Tiny and Alec on closed-captioned TV.

Most of the X5 males in the room were actually rooting for Alec to win. Tiny didn't have a lot of fans among the X5 males. Most remembered his bullying ways back at Manticore.

Krit lounged within his cage as he watched the fight until he heard a small noise above his head. Looking up, his eyes narrowed and he stood up to try and figure out what it was. It didn't sound like a rat in the walls…

The grate above his head was being loosened, and fingers were grasping the grate as it was pushed open to hang from the ceiling by its hinges, and a blond head peered out, smiling.

The others noticed as well and stood, watching carefully.

Krit grinned widely as he murmured, "Syl, you're full of surprises."

Syl began to carefully lower herself using a cable attached to a harness that was buckled around her hips, a backpack over her shoulders…and she was still able to wink at Krit. "Yeah, and that's why you love me."

"You know it, baby," Krit answered, then noticed a camera in the corner that was about to turn his way. He frantically motioned for Syl to stop her progress. But she only grinned and said, "Watch and learn!" as she swung herself toward the side of the camera, out of its range, and found hand holds and foot holds on the rock wall next to it. The move kind of reminded Krit of those Spider Man movies he watched that were made in the pre-Pulse days.

Taking a small box out of her pocket, Syl attached it to the camera and pressed a button that caused a green light to blink on top. Then she tugged the cable, indicating to whoever had lowered her to tighten the slack a bit. And then in a quick maneuver, she swung back to Krit's cage, landing gracefully on top of it.

Krit crossed his arms and smirked up at her proudly, "You can say a lot about Manticore, but they did teach a few useful skills."

Syl beamed happily. "Yeah, they did. We've been recording you guys for about ten minutes. That will just loop the same ten minutes over and over until I remove that attachment."

Syl removed her backpack as one of the other males asked, "Who the hell are you?"

Syl began opening her backpack and met the eyes of the belligerent male as she remarked snarkily, "The girl that's going to save your collective asses, that's who."

She pulled out a Glock .45 and passed it to Krit through the slats at the top of the cage. He took it, checked the clip within and closed it with a professional click, placing it in his waistband at the small of his back and covering the gun with his t-shirt.

"Pass me one more, Syl. I need to give one to Alec."

"Who?" Syl asked, confused.

Krit pointed at the screen and answered, "The one fighting right now."

Syl passed another gun to Krit along with two clips before she unhooked the cable from her harness, jumped down and landed on her feet with catlike grace between the cages. She began passing out ammo, only small stuff they can hide on their persons.

"I assume everyone knows how to use these. You get one gun a piece and one extra clip. Use it wisely because you'll need to fight your way to the weapons storage on the upper floor, southeast side. Once you get stocked up on your ammo they have in storage, then you can attack and fight your way out."

She returned to Krit and slung the empty backpack on top of his cage, then grabbed the bars and leaned forward, smiling flirtatiously. "And I'll be waiting for you."

Krit kissed her, showing everyone in the room whom this female belonged to, practically marking "MINE!" all over the kiss.

Once they parted, she lowered her voice, "Our team is outside, and…" she hesitated for a moment, biting her lip, "Zack is here."

Confused, Krit asked, "Where did you find Zack?"

Syl shrugged. "He found us actually. Right after you were captured. He saw it go down, Krit, and he followed you here, then he came back to us and let us know where to find you. He helped design a plan to get everyone out."

They heard a snap coming from the TV and looked up just as Alec got his shoulder dislocated by Tiny. Everyone winced.

Syl's eyes widened. "Is that...?"

"Ben? No." Krit chuckled, "I made the same mistake. That is his twin, Alec. X5-494."

Syl turned back to Krit. "What the hell is going on here, Krit?"

"Never mind that." Krit shook his head and made a slashing motion with his hand, signaling the end of that discussion. "Zack being here is dangerous, Syl. You need to send him somewhere else."

"Where? There is nowhere else. He's acting as our CO again. He's leading this attack."

"Syl, I'm serious. Listen to me." Krit grabbed the bars and leaned forward, speaking low, "Max is here and she's in heat. The Ben look-alike up there?" Krit motioned his head to the TV screen and winced when he found that Alec's shoulder was wrenched for a second time.

That was going to leave a mark!

"He's fighting right now for HER. Unlike Ben, I can tell you that Alec is all alpha…and so is Zack. If those two confront each other, and they're near Max and her pheromones when that happens, all hell will break loose."

Comprehension dawned on Syl as her eyes widened. "And they'll fight each other instead of the enemy."

"And you win the gold star!" Krit grinned, joking with her.

"How am I supposed to keep Zack away?" she asked in a rather disbelieving tone.

Krit's mind raced as he asked, "Did you find out where they're keeping Max's son?"

Syl's eyes lit up. "Yes. White has a penthouse apartment about five miles away from here."

"Good! Convince Zack to go on a recon mission to rescue Max's son instead. He needs to stay far away from Max for another twenty-four hours."

With Syl's doubtful look, Krit reached through the bars and cupped her cheek. "Please, Syl? Work towards that hero complex of his. He'll want to get in Max's good graces. Explain the situation to Zane first. He has been our CO until Zack came back. Maybe Zane can pull rank and help convince Zack to form a team to retrieve Keegan. That should keep him busy, sending him back to HQ, and then on another mission. And for the love of God, DON'T tell Zack that Max is here. If he doesn't know she's here, he might think she's with her son."

"Okay, but I'm not making any promises. You know how bull-headed Zack is when it comes to executing his plans. He doesn't just up and leave before the mission's accomplished. And by the way, Max being in heat… I know she's your sister, but the pheromones would affect you too."

Krit had to chuckle. Syl was actually jealous. He still caressed her cheek. "Baby, I'm already mated, therefore it didn't affect me. I love YOU. Max is my sister and that's all she is, and all she'll ever be to me. And as soon as I get out of here and get you alone, I'll show you just how much you mean to me."

* * *

After Tiny was declared dead, Alec was shackled in chains and escorted out of the cage and to Max's glass cubicle. White himself was waiting by the door.

"I need to thank you, 494. You just made me a butt load of money."

Alec's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You bet on me?"

White grinned. "I bet on the fact that you have feelings for 452. Emotion may be for the weak, but at times it's a great motivator in a fight."

He used a keycard to electronically open the glass cubicle. The two guards shoved Alec roughly inside and slammed the door behind him.

"Alec!" Max started to run to him, but she stopped in her tracks when Alec raised a finger.

"Unless you wanna get knocked up Max, stay right where you are!"

Unlike Max's normal nature to kick Alec's ass from here to Sunday for telling her what to do, she did as she was told. It wasn't in her normal nature to listen to him without a fight. But she did it. She stopped about ten feet away.

Alec tried his best to breathe through his mouth as he leaned against the glass, his shoulder hurting him like crazy. His tone brooking no argument, he ordered, "Now back up…get as far away from me as you can."

Max began backing up but she murmured in a distracted voice, "Alec…your shoulder. I need to re-set it."

"Maxie…I'll take care of it. Just stay back. Besides, not much you can do while we're both chained up," he remarked dryly as he clanked his chains for emphasis.

Then Alec began slamming the back of his shoulder into the metal frame and glass until his shoulder popped, the sound causing Max to jump and Alec to curse loudly. Falling to his knees, he laid on his back on the hard floor with a groan.

"What are you doing?" Max asked curiously while at the same time keeping a cautious eye on him. Her breathing accelerated slightly due to smelling his testosterone and sweat. She could tell he was not immune to her.

"Trying to relax the muscles in my shoulder and let the nanocytes do their job…basically if we don't fuck, I have to fight someone else and I need a little time to recupe before that happens."

"So, why are we sitting around for?" Max began to pace. "We both get what we want, we go ahead and…"

Alec shook his head and said, "No."

"You're saying if we fuck, the other males will leave you alone and won't fight you, right?"

"If they smell your scent on me, and mine on you, basically it's over. No need to fight any longer." Then as an afterthought, Alec remarked to himself, "Although I don't think White knows that, or else I wouldn't be in here."

Max began to unbutton her blouse, drawing Alec's gaze to her fingers. He could smell her arousal, that she truly believed she was about to get what she wanted. Then, she declared in response to smelling the spike in his testosterone, "Okay. So let's do this."

She almost had her blouse completely unbuttoned by the tine Alec squeezed his eyes shut to block the sight of her black lacy bra holding two perfect breasts. "Arrgh! Max! Stop right there!" Alec rose to a sitting position in agitation. He opened his eyes, and they were practically spitting green fire as he pointed at her.

"Let me remind you that first of all, everyone can see us." He gestured at the walls around them. "Glass walls. Not much privacy. Secondly, your husband died a freaking WEEK ago, Max. If we have sex, you'll hate me afterward, just like last time. It's too soon for this!"

Max was actually shocked into silence. Satisfied, Alec laid back down again, discussion over as far as he was concerned. But Max being Max wouldn't let it go.

"I never hated you, Alec."

"Sure felt like it to me, Maxie."

"What made you think I hated you?"

He began ticking off the reasons on his fingers like it was the easiest thing in the world, "Oh! Let's see! One, the only time we did get together, that following morning you couldn't get out of my apartment fast enough. It was like the hounds of hell were after you." He met her eyes, the hurt there apparent, even if she could tell his arousal was sparking again for her.

He rose into a sitting position and held up two fingers, "Two, I meet up with you at Jam Pony later that day, and surprise, surprise, I get the ice queen treatment." She couldn't meet his eyes once again on that one, and he pressed on, "The way you were acting toward me made me feel like I had raped you instead of actually having consensual sex!" That memory alone had made him feel like a complete ass.

"So I tried to talk to you. And you tried to sidestep me. I had to literally pick you up and carry you to a storage closet to talk to you! That had made for an interesting discussion with Normal afterwards, I might add." The memory of that discussion was a headache all its own that he didn't care to think about right now.

"Three, I hear nothing from you for days; you avoided me like I had the bubonic plague until you stopped me at Crash and ordered-not asked, mind you-_ordered_ me to meet you in the alley where you told me you were pregnant like it was the freaking end of the world."

"I wasn't ready for a baby and I was scared!" Her voice sounded explosive and desperate. Obviously she hadn't thought through her actions back then. When she'd made her decisions later, it was out of anger and fear. Thinking back, she was beginning to regret those decisions and how they affected Alec. It never crossed her mind that he cared for her at all. He was a man-whore back then, at least in her eyes, and she was protecting herself from his gloating, that she would just be another notch in his belt.

"Shut up, I'm on a roll here! Finally, the day you had the amniocentesis, it's like you couldn't marry Logan fast enough!" It left Alec's mouth on a bitter note to know that she'd rather be with an Ordinary rather than him. That had hurt him terribly back then…and frankly it still did. He shook his head. "I will NOT repeat the same mistakes now, Max. We fuck now and you'll hate me…again. I couldn't bear it if that happened!"

"No I won't. I swear." Her heat, he knew, was the one talking right now…even if some part of it was true, it was obviously the heat cycle bringing it out. She was at that point where she would say anything, do anything, to get what she wanted from him.

"I want to believe you, Max…God! You have no idea how much I want to believe you, but let me point out, that is what you said the last time. Don't get me wrong." He stood up and rolled his aching shoulder, using it as a distraction from the ache in his groin. Even his eyes dilated in arousal and he was fighting his instincts with everything he had.

"Baby, I want you so bad I can taste it on the tip of my tongue, but I refuse to screw it up this time. I'd rather deal with temporary blue balls than you _ever _hating me." Though at this point, Alec was thinking that the blue balls might stay that way a few extra days with all the freaking pheromones he's been breathing in lately. It was a miracle that with sheer force of will he was holding out this long.

She boldly began to walk toward him as he stood his ground, watching her warily.

"You want me," she said in a near challenge.

He met her stare dead-on, breathing through his mouth again, his hard-on getting harder and more painful. "More than you'll ever know." He growled low, causing her to stop her progress. She instinctively knew that growl was a warning…NOT a welcome. His voice was low and dangerous, "But not here. And not so soon after Logan's death. Fight it, Max. Remember the love you had for Logan. Use it to keep away from me." It hurt like hell to say that to her; his features were in anguish as he begged her to listen.

Then he tried another tactic, "Hell! If that doesn't work, then get mad at me! Think back to every screw up I ever made and use that anger to stay the hell away from me!" Part of him was grateful that the thought of her dead hubby wasn't enough to make her stop…made him re-think her marriage with the Ordinary.

Were they not happy? Did she regret marrying Logan instead of choosing him?

Max advanced on him—he inhaled her pheromones and growled, "Max, for the love of God, don't give in. Please! I won't be able to hold out much longer."

He knew it had been a mistake to let the last words roll out of his mouth the moment her gaze on him turned predatory. Like she was finally getting what she wanted after all this time. "That's what I'm betting on," Max replied as she raised her chained hands to his jaw and kissed him soundly.

And just like last time, he lost the battle of wills. The need to make her his was great, but he also knew there was something greater he wanted…something even more than just the acceptance and use of her body. He wanted the acceptance of her heart and mind to be his and his alone, whether it be in heat or outside of heat. The acceptance that she was his and he'd always be hers.

He'd rather she be of sound mind when she made that decision.

He deepened the kiss, his mouth taking complete dominance of her mouth as she moaned in submission.

* * *

White was in the middle of a conversation with the high priestess when he noticed the kiss and knew what was about to happen within the glass box he placed 494 and 452. He made a disgusted noise and snapped his fingers at one of the guards, his tone sarcastic.

"We have curtains put up for a reason, Dominic! Care to lower them so I don't have to watch this version of Animal Kingdom?"

* * *

Alec barely registered curtains being lowered around them, plunging them into complete darkness. Thank Manticore for giving them night vision!

Alec pulled Max against him and kissed his way down her neck, taking a moment to enjoy the way Max exposed her neck to him. The submissive posture wasn't lost on him.

He raised one of his chained hands from her waist, up her back and to her exposed neck, massaging the pulse point with his thumb, caressing his lips to her ear as he whispered, "Forgive me!"

Then his fingers suddenly placed pressure on a nerve above her collarbone, squeezing. She fell to the floor in a heap within a few seconds as Alec fell to his knees next to her.

"You'll thank me later, Maxie."


	14. Chapter 14

The smell of pheromones became almost too much for Alec to handle in the small glass cubicle. He reclined against the glass wall and closed his eyes, letting old memories flood his fevered, pheromone-induced brain.

_Max was on her hands and knees on Alec's bed, moaning into his pillow as Alec thrust into her_ _wet heat_ f_rom behind, hard and fast. It seemed to be a position she favored, as he continuously stroked over her g-spot and the deep penetration hit another place deep within her that drove her crazy in the best way. They created the most erotic slapping noises either had ever heard. Her whimpers, moans and cries spurring him on like nothing ever had in his life as she pushed back against him every time he thrust forward. He reached around to fondle her clit. He gave the bundle of nerves a pinch as Max whimpered._

"_Mmmf… Yes… Oh Alec… don't stop… So good."_

_He could tell she was about to come again, and therefore he purposely slowed down his thrusts, torturing them both. He leaned over her, his chest against her back, his cock sinking into her slowly and pulling back out just as slowly, making her writhe and whimper in pleasure into his pillow. She tried to reach back and grab his ass to spur him into a faster rhythm, but he caught her hand and pinned it to the mattress using his larger hand. He did the same for her other hand, pinning both of her hands down and interlocking their fingers. The move completely dominated her to his will._

_His panting breath by her ear, he demanded, "Tell me what you feel, Maxie…tell me what will get you off the hardest."_

"_Duh! Go faster!" she barked at him, frustration at the slow pace driving her mad._

_He bit her earlobe and with his hot breath in her ear, he asked, "Like this?" and he pumped hard and fast about four times, causing her to cry out, but he slowed down again before she could come. The torture was exquisite, but she was on the precipice of a huge orgasm, causing her voice to have a mean edge to it._

"_Damn it, Alec! Make me come!"_

_He kept his strokes slow and torturous, driving them both insane with expectation. "You know the drill, Maxie. Say please…beg me again very nicely to let you come or else I'll keep you at this point all night. You know I can make you feel so good…" He let his cock slip out and stroke her inner folds, bumping her clit and making her moan, then placing himself at her entrance, waiting for her pleas._

_She had no pride left anymore; he had made her beg all night, starting at Crash and then in his bedroom. She hated to admit it to herself, but she liked the fact that for once, a man could dominate her. It wasn't always fun being the one in charge, like she always was in the past. This time, she could let someone else be in charge._

_Besides, Alec always made the reward for begging worth it._

"_Fuck me harder…please, Alec?"_

_He slid in deep and fast and held himself there for a moment. She squeezed her vaginal muscles, causing Alec to groan into her ear and thrust harder, which in turn caused Max to moan and bite her lip._

"_Say 'fuck' again…I love that dirty word coming out of your mouth, baby…"_

"_Fuck me…please? Fuck… Oh, oh…"_

_The more she said the it, the more he rewarded her with a deeper and faster thrust. He finally raised up on his knees, grabbed her hips and thrust hard and fast, his balls slapping her clit, the __slapping__ noise their bodies were making going unnoticed as they both concentrated completely on what they were feeling._

"_Yes Alec… ummph… yes… I'm… coming… Ahhhh! Yes, yes, fuck, fuck….."_

_Alec bit his lip while her muscles spasmed around his cock, trying to hold back just long enough for his bed partner to enjoy her orgasm before letting himself go…after several more thrusts and numerous screams from Max, he ejaculated into her, his body spasming hard as well as he let out a shout of relief. He pulled her hips against him and held her there while he continuously shuddering within her. It went on and on for so long, that Alec began to wonder if it would ever stop. He didn't care if it did __stop__ or not, as long as he could stay right here, inside Max for eternity._

_He had a brief thought that he'd forgotten a condom, but Max squeezed him with her internal muscles once more, making him hard again, and causing an involuntary groan to come out of his mouth._

_Thank Manticore for the X5 stamina. She would have killed an ordinary human male by now._

_In a sudden move, Max removed herself from him, flipped him to his back and straddled him, taking him within her for yet another round, this time with her in control. She used her hands to pin his wrists to the pillow as she rode him hard and fast. Alec realized he rather liked this position since her breasts were dangling right at mouth level. He lifted his head just enough to catch a nipple between his teeth, causing Max to grind against him harder._

_Raising his knees, he used his feet on the mattress as leverage to thrust up as she came down, building a rhythm that once again caused the bedsprings to squeak and the headboard to bang against the wall repeatedly. Neither cared about the neighbors that pounded on the wall telling them to be quiet. They were in their own world where nothing mattered but the pleasure each gave to the other._

_Alec had to release her nipple as Max raised up and gyrated and ground herself against him. It was the sexiest sight Alec had ever seen. But he wanted more out of her. He reached between their bodies with his thumb and brushed her clit, grinning as Max came again with a shout._

_He never felt more like a stud than he did at this moment._

_Her internal muscles squeezed him like a vice once again in her orgasm, he grabbed her hips and thrust up, crying out in a roar as he came for the umpteenth time that night, spurting his seed deep within her again._

_And he no longer cared about the lack of a condom. Even if she did kick his ass later, it would be well worth it. _

* * *

In the present, Alec realized vaguely that Max was hitting her peak pheromone cycle. That was the point Max had been in her heat cycle when he met her at Crash that last time. This meant he had another twenty-four hours of torture to endure. Rubbing his fingers lightly against his fly, he whimpered in pleasure and pain. It was so tempting to take what Max offered. She said he could, practically threw herself at him earlier.

But he wouldn't. He'd deal. This was not "his first rodeo," a term he learned from Colonel Lydecker. He'd dealt with this same temptation before and he could do it again. The X5 females at home outnumbered the males, so he'd had his turn at females in heat trying to maul him and having to place them in lockdown with the same move he just used on Max to knock her out.

He gave in only once…with Max. Max was the one female he really didn't want to resist back then. The others that tried to entice him with their pheromones…he's a guy and it was tempting, but he didn't want to take the chance of pregnancy. He didn't need "little Alecs" running around in Terminal City. Especially with a mother that was NOT Max.

He glanced down at her prone form. His dick hurt like crazy, his balls were tight, and his shoulder was on fire with pain.

"God! Why me?" Alec groaned to himself as he shut his eyes again and let more memories play through his mind.

* * *

_Max collapsed on top of Alec after the last episode of her riding him. Alec knew what would happen next. And so did Max. She was still dumping pheromones, he was still dumping testosterone. He became hard again, and he was still inside her when that happened._

_He had to force himself to push her off of him and stand on wobbly legs. Again, Max whimpered at the loss of Alec's cock._

"_Shower time, Max_…_I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of my own funk. Come on."_

_He helped Max to her feet and smirked to himself when she appeared a little saddle sore. He could definitely relate. His cock and pubic bone were pretty sore too._

_He turned on the shower, and adjusted it to the right temperature, helping Max inside. He grabbed towels and washcloths quickly. He placed the towels on the sink and stepped into the shower with the washcloths, pulling the curtain closed._

_They soaped each other up, scrubbed each other clean, and took their time doing it. He found out that Max had a hidden mischievous streak that came out during her heat cycle. She eyed him as she soaped up her hands in a frothy lather, then placing both over his cock. She pulled at his cock with her top hand and did a twist maneuver that made Alec see stars, then she did the same with the bottom hand. Hand over hand she did it again and again, the soap and water a fantastic lubricant._

_She finally let him rinse off, just like how he had done earlier after cleaning her up, making sure to wash out all the semen within her. She knelt in front of him and licked the tip._

"_Fuck!" Alec cried out at the sensation. He was a little bigger than average. Most girls didn't like to give him head for that reason. The best he ever got in the past was when the girl would suck the tip while giving him a hand job. _

"_Max, you don't have to do this…" Alec tried to tell her, but she licked him again and he sagged against the shower wall, eyes closed in bliss. She put the head into her mouth and licked all around the head, sucking him at the same time and holding the base in one fist, pumping up and down._

_When she hummed against him, he felt the vibration throughout his entire shaft, making him nearly jump out of his skin._

_Max stopped and waited until he opened his eyes again and looked down at her. She was squatting in front of his dick, her mouth ready to take him again, and her free hand was playing with herself. The sight nearly caused him to squirt involuntarily. He just barely held on to the willpower to keep that from happening. He wanted to take a little time to enjoy this rare treat._

_Max licked him again like she was licking an ice cream cone and he bit his lip to hold back a whimper._

"_You don't want me to stop," she told him knowingly._

"_Hell no! I don't want you to stop." The words came out without thought._

"_Tell me what you want, Alec_…_do you want to come down my throat?"_

_Her words widened his eyes. Frankly, no girl ever did that for him. Not even offered! His size scared the shit out of most girls. But apparently, not Max. Girls in the past usually just let him shoot his load all over their breasts. To have Max offer to do this was an extremely huge turn on._

"_If you do, you'll have my undying gratitude for the rest of my life!" The seriousness of his tone brought a smile to Max's lips._

_She giggled, something she didn't normally do, and he loved the sound. He was determined to keep his eyes open and watch Max._

_She took him back into her mouth again and sucked. She stopped playing with herself, knowing all it would do for her was drive her crazy until he took her again. She would give him this gift. She gently cupped his balls and gave him a squeeze as she sucked him deeper._

_He was certain he heard angels singing. The feel of the wet suction of her mouth and talented tongue and as he continued watching her, his eyes widened more as she actually deep throated him all the way to the base._

"_Oh God!" Alec cried out in astonishment and shock. It felt so good as her head bobbed up and down, taking him all the way into her throat and back out. He wanted to thrust his hips so badly, and it took every bit of willpower and self-restraint not to do it. He didn't want to hurt her._

"_Mmmmmm," Max said as she came up for air and licked the head, meeting his eyes. "Sucking your cock turns me on so much_…_I love the way you taste."_

_Alec, still wide-eyed at what he was witnessing, gulped hard and croaked out, "Really?"_

_She nodded her head as she sucked gently on his balls, then licked all the way up the shaft. She licked the head in circles, keeping eye contact with Alec._

_Damn! Where had this female been all his life? _

"_Want me to do it again? Take you down my throat?"_

"_Hell yeah!" _ _What man in his right mind would turn THAT invitation down?_

_She slowly sucked his entire length down her throat again. Alec was completely amazed that Max seemed to thoroughly enjoy what she was doing, and in turn, he enjoyed the experience of a very rare pleasure. She seemed to not have a gag reflex. This time, she surprised him as she tickled the perineum behind the balls and he yelped in shock as he accidentally thrust further into her throat. Max giggled again, although muffled, causing vibrations to reverberate down his shaft again. Then she set a steady pace, periodically either squeezing his balls or tickling the area behind them. There was no way Alec could hold back any longer._

"_Oh God Max_…_I'm gonna_…_come_… _MAX!"_

_He tried to warn her, tried his best, most girls didn't like to swallow a guy's semen, or so he'd been told. He never had a girl swallow his jizz before and he truly didn't expect Max to do it either. But she surprised him yet again. She tickled the sensitive area behind his balls, he cried out and shot his load into Max's throat. He could feel her swallowing as he cried out helplessly, grabbing her head and keeping her in place. He had to lock his knees to keep from falling into a heap in the tub._

_And he watched Max milk him completely, swallowing everything he had to give_…

_And he loved her more for it._

_He panted hard while leaning against the wall, words of praise tumbling out of his mouth as Max disentangled Alec's fingers from her hair. She stood up and kissed him, allowing him to taste himself on her tongue._

_Against his mouth, she murmured, "You've done so much for me in the past twenty-four hours, I wanted to return the favor."_

_He grabbed her head and kissed her soundly in a vehement thank you._

_They realized the water was turning cold. Max herself turned off the water, which Alec was plenty thankful for. He wasn't so sure he could make his limbs obey his commands right now. Not that he was going to utter a single word of complaint._

_That was the best blowjob ever. Bar none!_

* * *

Alec groaned in memory. He had plenty of one night stands since he was with Max, but none of those women ever compared to Max's prowess.

Which made this all the more difficult to resist. He knew what he and Max were capable of, his body wanted nothing more than to take hers and make her his again. But a small part of his brain kept reminding him why he shouldn't.

He had to do something…he wanted to hit something, wanted to fight something. Anything to take the edge off of this testosterone spike he was dealing with.

He stood up and pounded on the glass with his fist, "Hey! Anybody out there? I'm ready for another fight!"

* * *

Krit used Manticore sign language to signal the other caged X5s, keeping the signals hidden from the camera.

They all knew the plan. He would volunteer to fight Alec next. Once Krit was led out to the ring, Syl would drop back in and release the prisoners and bring them up through the grate in the ceiling. They'd join the others in a diversion to help Krit, Alec, and Max to get out.

White breezed in with two of his minions. He looked around at the caged X5 men and asked, "Okay, who's next?"

No one said anything at first, but Krit rested his forearms against the front of his cage as he answered, "I'll take 494 on."

White snickered and asked, "You? Surely you're not planning to breed your own sister. That's sick and twisted, even for you freaks."

Krit shrugged his shoulders and stated, "Nah! She's my sister. Call it family loyalty. Nobody is going to touch my sister without going through me first. Besides, 494 and I aren't exactly friends."

* * *

The curtains were raised on their cubicle and Alec was standing face to face with the Priestess. The one he flipped off earlier.

She motioned to Max, who was still unconscious. "Did you wear her out, 494?"

Alec smirked cockily, and shrugged, "Yeah, something like that. So…you got someone ready to fight me? 'Cause I'm ready to go."

"Your next opponent will be 471."

Alec was trained from an early age to not show his emotions. He kept the Manticore mask on his face, but inwardly, he was struggling.

To fight Max's brother to the death? He really didn't know if he could go through with it. If his goal was to keep Max from hating him, killing her brother would not win him any points. But he'd gladly spar with him at least to get rid of some of this pent-up frustration. Maybe the two of them could find a way to get out of this mess?

The Priestess watched him expectantly as Alec cracked his knuckles and answered confidently, "Bring it on!"


	15. Chapter 15

_**Author's note - sorry it took so long to post but it looks like my grammar beta is AWOL, so I did the best I could on the grammar and spelling on my own. Of course it's been a while since I sent anything to her, so she may have moved on to other things. A lot of real life crap going on with me. lol! Thank you to Max333 for helping me elongate the fight scene a bit. Your help is really appreciated!**_

* * *

_This might not have been the best of ideas…_

Krit thought this doubtfully while he was in the cage with Alec, watching him warily as he prowled back and forth like a caged panther. He honestly thought that Alec and Max would have had sex by now, and some of that energy would have been expelled. Alec looked a bit dangerous, even to an X5. Come to think of it, any alpha male who has been denied sex… or in this case, denying himself sex from his mate, will be that much more of a dangerous threat.

In other words, Alec wouldn't look like he was ready to tear him apart with his bare hands, and he probably would have done the deed with a smile on his face.

Krit didn't factor into his plan that Alec might turn down the offer to mate. Which made X5-494 very dangerous at this moment. More primal. Earlier, while they were in their own cages, it was kind of comical to watch Alec and Max relate to each other. But now, Krit had volunteered to be trapped in a cage with an X5 alpha male that wanted a piece of him. There was no place to run, nor hide. He could tell Alec viewed him as just one more male getting between him and his mate…Max.

And that certainly didn't bode well for any other X5 male in Alec's presence.

At this moment, they were waiting for the bell that would begin the fight. Krit had removed his shirt, and was careful to hide the guns within as he placed it on the floor, hoping it didn't raise suspicion amongst the Familiars. For this plan to work, he had to find a way to get through to Alec before the other X5 decided to take him out.

_Ding!_

Krit didn't have much more time to think about it as Alec ran toward him with a loud roar. Krit waited until Alec was almost on him, bouncing on the balls of his feet in preparation. He jumped high and flipped over Alec, landing behind him. Seeing the action before from Max, Alec brought back the elbow of his good arm just as fast, catching Krit slightly off-guard and hitting him squarely on the nose once he landed.

Seeing stars, Krit stumbled back as he quickly used his fingers to check his nose. Not broken, thank God, but blood was starting to ooze out.

Yeah, being in a cage match with an enraged alpha male was not one of his best ideas.

This was an all-out mate war. Alec was not thinking straight. The pheromones that he had inhaled had turned him into an enraged warrior with only one thought in mind. Kill the competition.

It didn't help much that Max was still out cold in her glass cubicle. A small blessing for now, but they needed her conscious when they made their escape.

But he couldn't think about that now as Alec was about to quickly follow up with a spinning kick that was aimed at his head. Krit quickly ducked under his leg, and spun around to bring his own leg forth with a low sweep, nailing Alec in the back of the knee, effectively kicking him down, since all of Alec's weight was on that one leg. Alec fell to the floor with a thud, his knee taking the brunt of the force until he landed on his bad shoulder.

Gritting his teeth against the pain, Alec, in his enraged state flipped back up to his feet, not letting it deter him in the slightest. His adrenaline was enough to help numb the pain and keep him fighting. He attacked Krit in retaliation for daring to usurp his rightful place as alpha. He would prove to the other X5 just who was top male around here. Krit saw the look for what it was and he was ready for him.

As intended, once he leaped toward Alec, he caught Krit as the two of them jumped toward each other at X5 speed and force. Krit quickly brought his legs up, and used them to wrap around Alec's neck, as a submission hold, then threw his body back, pulling both X5's down to the mat. Alec's hands were gripping Krit's thighs to prevent his airway from being cut off. The crowd was on their feet cheering Krit on, but at the moment, the Familiars were the last thing on Krit's mind as he tried to subdue his opponent long enough to get him to see reason.

Leaning forward, he used his tightly muscled thighs to tighten his hold, effectively giving Alec very little room to move and in his primal state of mind, he couldn't think clearly enough to use a move to get out. It slowed him down for just a few seconds, and made him give more focus to Krit as he talked to him. "Listen to me brother!" Krit grunted as he struggled with the alpha X5 male, the crowd continually cheering loudly around them.

He used the noise as a sort of "sound camouflage" to try and explain to Alec. He knew Alec's keen hearing would pick up what he told him as he tightened his legs and cursed at him, "Listen you little asswipe! I have a plan to get us out of here but you have GOT to calm down. Max will kill you if you kill me, you know that. Do you really want that on your conscience?"

At that moment, Alec took a page from Max's play book and played dirty, biting Krit on the inner thigh, a very sensitive area causing Krit to exclaim, "Fuck!" as his hold loosened enough to allow Alec to roll out of it. He was slightly shocked that Alec would pull such a bizarre stunt, but he had to admit to himself that it worked. The two of them jumped back up and Krit went to hit him in the bad shoulder, a sucker punch that would have been considered a dirty move, but at this moment, he was desperate. It was all about survival right now.

However, Alec counteracted the move, like he saw it coming. He grabbed the offending arm, pushing past the pain in his shoulder and twisted Krit's arm until it locked under his own. Krit met Alec's eyes as he swallowed his yelp of pain. For just a pain-filled moment, he saw the cat-like slits staring back at him in animalistic fury. Before anyone could blink, Alec slammed his forehead into Krit's face, causing more blood to come out along with more pain. But Alec wasn't through yet. He then grabbed a fist full of Krit's hair and shoved him down hard, and bringing his own knee up at the same time, connecting painfully with Krit's solar plexus, three times, knocking the wind out of him. Using the temporarily deflated Krit to his advantage, Alec swung himself under the still twisted arm and placed himself behind him.

He kicked out the backs of Krit's knees, his intention to knock his opponent down to the ground even further. But before he could do this, Krit kicked back out toward Alec's groin, making Alec take a few steps back. Not liking the fact that Krit could defend himself from behind, Alec angrily grabbed the offending leg and pulled back, making him lose his balance and fall face first onto the cage floor.

Alec pounced on the prone Krit, bringing his arm behind his back and up, wrenching his shoulder, preventing the X5 from getting out of the move unless he wanted it effectively dislocated. Then Alec crooked his good arm around Krit's neck. It effectively kept him in a submission hold with himself on top. This kind of hold could cut off his oxygen and Alec placed a knee in Krit's kidney for good measure to keep him down. They both knew there wasn't a way to get out of this hold that didn't involve breaking limbs. Alec now had the upper hand.

"What… plan?" Alec grunted harshly into Krit's ear, making the hold look like it was cutting off Krit's oxygen to the Familiars outside of the ring. Krit's red face and struggle made it look authentic. Truthfully, Alec left Krit a little breathing room instead of cutting his oxygen off completely, which after the ass-kicking he had just gone through, he was thankful for small favors.

"Guns… are in my shirt… one for you and one for me." Krit gritted his teeth against the pain of the knee in his back and his arm feeling like it would break off at the shoulder. Already knowing the areas would bruise with the amount of force Alec was inflicting, he continued explaining anyway. "And… I stole a key to this cage. X5 storm troopers will bust in here in a few moments." He moved slightly to gauge the bruising damage done and inwardly take inventory of how well he'd fair in a fight with the Familiars when needed later.

Safe to say his body was in a fair amount of pain. He'd be able to hold his own for a little while if he had a weapon at all times, but he would still need a day or two to recupe from Alec's inflicted injuries. Pushing past this thought, Krit grunted out, "When that happens, we grab the guns, use the key to get out and fight our way out of this hellhole."

Giving Krit an out, and not wanting Max enraged at him later on, Alec loosened his hold in a show of mercy, much to the relief and displeasure to Krit's bruised ego. They both knew that Krit couldn't figure a way out of the hold. So for good measure, Krit swung his arm behind him, to back-handedly punch Alec, and just as quickly, twisted his body out from under him and brought his other arm out and up, to bring Alec down to the mat by smashing his own elbow into the back of Alec's head just above the barcode, forcing Alec's to hit the cage floor face first, a little retaliatory gift from his earlier injuries.

Then he flipped himself on top of Alec, in the same move Alec used on him earlier, an arm around his throat. But before Krit could do anything further, Alec used his head again as a battering ram to head butt Krit and roll out of his hold.

The two of them continuously grappled, using various maneuvers, neither really gaining too much ground over the other, until Krit got tired of getting his back repeatedly slammed into the cage floor by Alec and finally used both feet to kick said X5 across the cage and stand up with a kip flip.

Alec made his way a little slower back to his feet, and realized his lip was split now and his head hurt from the head butt. He spit out blood on the mat and glared at Krit. Krit in turn grinned back, grateful he wasn't the only one feeling the effects of their fight, then took a fighting stance. His cocky smile almost mirrored the one Alec liked to use. "Sorry guy, I had to do something to mess with those pretty boy looks of yours."

"Have you looked in a mirror lately 471? Male version of Max, remember? And I gotta say… she is pretty hot… but then again… male version is probably just… mediocre." The last word was spat out of Alec's mouth, but his wink showed Krit he was kidding, and he was fine.

Krit shrugged as he and Alec circled each other, trying to find the right opportunity to pounce, something to make the seemingly never ending fight last longer without expending too much more energy that they would definitely need later, "All X5's are made to look good, what can I say? At least the stealth series like us. So… you're okay? You're out of your pheromone haze?" he asked, hoping the fight so far had made Alec less likely to actually rip his head off.

"For the moment… of course it also doesn't hurt that Max is out cold right now, so she's not producing as much pheromones." Alec paused to rotate his shoulders a moment while bouncing on the balls of his feet. He winced slightly that his sore shoulder was still not 100% and he knew probably wouldn't get to that point for a few days. He used the shoulder as a distraction again to help reduce the pheromone effects. It significantly helped out that Max was out cold at the moment and not oozing pheromones like the cat in heat she was right now.

Alec gave his trademark smirk in answer as he gestured between them, "Plus the play fighting here, it's helping. You know, to take care of some of the pent up frustration, if you know what I mean." He waggled his eye brows a little in mock show. "You know how it is. Fight or fuck, right?"

Alec struck out a little, aiming a low kick at Krit's inner knee, to which Krit blocked with ease using a shin block, already knowing this was simply putzing around for show as Alec continued what he was saying while the two circled each other again, "I'm feeling pretty good actually, as long as we keep this going…" Krit struck out towards him, a high kick that Alec ducked as he swung back around and kicked Krit in the back, making the X5 grunt in minor pain at being unsurped yet again, Alec grinned as he asked nonchalantly, "So… we just keep pretending to fight and keep everyone occupied until the cavalry comes in?" Alec blurred forward and, nailed Krit in the back of the neck just below his barcode, with his elbow, retaliating for what Krit did earlier. But the position and lack of power behind it prevented any actual damage thankfully. "That's the plan?" Alec asked conversationally with a slight bit of wit behind it.

Krit was bouncing around, keeping his distance from the more agile X5 before him. Their movements now were pretty much shadow boxing with each other he replied, "Pretty much. Wanna spar while we wait?" Krit didn't wait for a response as he blurred, rounding three hits to Alec's flat stomach while Alec grabbed the offending arm, twisted by his hand and landed a backward elbow to his chest.

"With pleasure." Alec responded cockily and shoved Krit forward as the two attacked each other once again.

It was like watching a kick boxing fight in fast forward. Both X5s were well trained and very good at hand-to-hand combat. The Familiars were on their feet cheering, although their supposedly more superior brains could barely keep up with the blurred moves in the ring. So they couldn't tell that the moves between the animals were actually now barely touching each other, it was all for show.

"So, we do this for a little while and you'll keep your head in the game later?" Krit asked as he delivered a spin kick that Alec ducked. Then Alec kicked low and forward, as Krit brought his leg up just in time to avoid being knocked down, effectively counter-acting Alec's move. They continued to throw punches that each side-stepped.

"What do you mean?" Alec grunted in exertion as he fought back.

"I mean, if you fight with me here and get some of that pent up sexual frustration out of you, will you be able to fight Familiars instead of constantly thinking of the nearest empty space to throw Max onto? Because I need your head in the game, man. I don't want to be out there fighting off Familiars and worrying if you have my back or not."

"You don't trust me?" Alec punched out toward Krit, again his opponent side-stepped him.

"I know Max trusts you. That's good enough for me. However, I don't trust pheromones. I've been there dude. Let me just say, for the record, that fucking is all you think about."

Alec used an elbow to pretend to punch Krit in the nose again. Krit feigned stumbling backwards with the mock force.

"I dunno… you called me an asswipe you dickhead!"

"I call them like I see them."

"Fuck you man!"

Krit made a crude gesture at himself, indicating his crotch, "Yeah, Max plus the Y chromosome dude. You want to fuck me too because I'm the closest thing to Maxie. See? You can't help thinking about it. Calling me dickhead, telling me to fuck you… dude, get your mind out of the gutter! Didn't you hear me tell Ames I don't swing that way?"

Alec scoffed, "In your dreams pal! I will say this though. Call me an asswipe again you little fuck, Max's brother or not, I will take you out."

"Try it! ASSWIPE!" Krit goaded.

Before they could do anything further, machine gunfire sounded, causing the crowd to take cover and for Alec and Krit to crouch in response.

"We'll pick this up later." Alec told him and then asked, "Where are the guns?"

Krit reached out and grabbed his shirt, tossing a gun and clip toward Alec, who caught them expertly. Seeing the 45 mm was loaded already, he quickly put the extra clip in his jeans pocket, grabbed his own shirt as Krit put his gun in his waistband, clip in his pocket, shouldered into his t-shirt and ran toward the cage door. A Familiar was standing on the other side.

A bullet hit the Familiar right between the eyes, bringing him down. It took Krit a moment to process the fact that Alec just shot the guy down.

"Hurry up dickhead. Let's get outta here!" Alec hissed.

* * *

**_Another author's note - so peeps! Do your favorite author a favor and tell me what you think. I know fight scenes are not my strong suit but any critiques or encouraging words would be an absolute sign of love in my book. lol! So please review!_**


	16. Chapter 16

_Author's note - any grammar faux pas and misspellings are all on me since I still can't find my grammar beta. If anyone would like to have that job, feel free to PM me and let me know. Again thanks to Max333 for brainstorming with me and making suggestions._

* * *

Machine gunfire sounded again as Krit and Alec crouched in conditioned response, keeping their heads down. Krit pulled the key out of his jeans pocket and reached through the bars to insert the key into the slot in front of the cage. Alec shot a few more times at Familiars nearby that were coming toward them, giving Krit the time he needed to unlock the mechanism and get them out.

"Hurry up, dickhead, or I'll be out of ammo by the time you figure out how to operate that fucking locking mechanism!" Alec was a tad worried that Krit's unlocking skills were a little slower than he liked. It shouldn't be that hard. It's the friggin' key to the cage, it's not like he has to use an actual lock pick instead.

"Patience, asswipe." Krit grunted as he got the key inserted and jiggled it, finally unlocking the cage.

"You're gonna pay for that 'asswipe' comment one day. I don't forget easily you know." Alec warned, getting tired of being called that so repetitively. And by a beta no less.

Swinging the door open, Krit pulled out his gun, staying crouched with Alec as he snarked, "Yeah, yeah, promises, promises. Do me a favor and do something useful. Cover me!"

Krit jumped out of the cage while Alec shot cover fire from behind him, following him out. Alec took down two more Familiars. Krit crouched on one knee and began firing and taking down three more in his path.

It was pandemonium and confusion. Apparently not all Familiars were warriors. Most were running for the exits. Alec noted there were even some kids in the auditorium, causing a momentary flashback. He would have had no problem taking down the adults, but since his time in Cosovo, back in his Manticore days, taking out children like he had been forced to do in an out-of-the-way village was something he always had a problem with and yet another thing Manticore tried to brainwash out of him.

"I'm going for Max!" Krit yelled over his shoulder, snapping Alec out of his reverie as Krit shot another Familiar down. The thought of another X5, brother or not, near HIS chosen mate wasn't an option in his state of mind.

"Like hell you are!" Alec grabbed Krit by the arm, jerking him back, "Max is my domain. I'm going after her!"

Seeing that the pheromones were, once again, working their magic, Krit knew he had to talk fast or risk getting them both shot, "Alec, screw the heroics, alright?" Krit darted his eyes around and quickly grabbed Alec by the shirt collar, forcing Alec with him as the two of them dove under the cage, out of the way of the screaming, fleeing and fighting so they could hammer out details. This way Krit felt like they weren't just sitting ducks for the Familiars to take out.

"I don't have time to argue with you 494. You can't get Max because of her effects on you!" He yelled in aggravation, trying to get him to see reason.

"Wanna bet?" Alec almost jumped back out from their hiding place, but Krit pulled him back in by the leg. In supreme aggravation, Krit yelled out, "Damn it! THIS is why I call you an asswipe! Listen to me, you fucking asshole! I'm already mated, so therefore her pheromones don't affect me like they do you. An added plus is that we're technically the same person but cloned with a different chromosome. Max will cloud your judgment just like she's doing now. You and Max have to split up for everybody's own good. You get near her and the fight with Familiars will not be on your mind, it will be on where to screw her! Do you want to take the risk of BOTH of you being shot because neither of you could keep it in your pants?!"

Alec was not used to anyone telling him what to do, especially a beta male like Krit. Who the hell did he think he was? Did he not know with whom he was dealing?

Krit literally snapped his fingers in front of Alec's nose, "Snap out of it, man! Max must be waking up because you're doing it again. The eyes are getting all cat-like again and you're thinking of humping Max." Krit lightly poked Alec in the temple a couple of times, causing Alec to literally growl, but it didn't perturb Krit in the least as he lectured, "Dude! Use that alpha brain up here, not the little one down there and THINK! Once we get out of here and we get you guys somewhere safe, you can screw her brains out for all I care. But right now I need you in this fight. Are you with me? Or do I need to knock you out and have you carried out?"

As angry as Alec was at this moment, it seemed he had two different Alec's warring within his head. The leader alpha male that wanted to protect his mate, ensure her safety while being the hero for her, the one that wanted to take charge of this small army invading the Familiars. And then there was the other side of him, the more rational one, screaming at him that Krit is right. The same side that made him turn down Max earlier because he didn't want her hating him.

Although he knew his more rational side was probably fighting a losing battle, he needed to find the strength to keep going and do what had to be done for the good of the unit, not just his own selfish needs. If he continued letting the primal side do his thinking for him, it could get them all killed.

"Yeah… I'm with you." Alec conceded on a sigh. He checked his ammo and reassured he was fine for now, he scanned the chaos outside their hiding place. "What do you want me to do?" he hated to take the second position, but knew his mind wasn't going to work for his benefit in this case. He knew Max trusted this X5. It was time for him to do the same.

"I'm heading to Max and getting her out. I want you in the opposite direction. Just fight your way through and shoot to kill. Every single Familiar, including the kids."

"What? The kids?"Alec asked in astonishment. "Why?" he definitely didn't like the idea of harming a child that was just being raised by lunatics. The kids were just that, kids.

"They're up and coming Familiars Alec. Those kids have probably more telekinesis powers than all those adults combined. And they've been trained to hate US. Do you want them growing up to kill us again ten years from now? I sure as hell don't. And if you can't stomach that…"Krit checked his watch, "You have ten minutes from right now to clear this place or it's blowing sky high. Maybe you can knock them out and we'll blow them away anyway."

"Krit, you can't be serious!" Alec was stunned that this was Max's brother talking. They definitely had different personalities and different views points. Max wouldn't have done this, he was certain of it.

"Alec, what the hell is your problem? You were career Manticore, this should be a piece of cake for you." Krit was in confusion over Alec's sudden ethics when it came to killing a Familiar, regardless of the size of the package. To Krit, a Familiar was a Familiar whether big or small. He had seen firsthand what some of those kids could do.

"Neither of us knows what Keegan looks like… I mean except for pictures… what if he's…" Alec knew he was grasping at straws, but he had to try something.

"He's not here Alec… we have intel that he's at White's penthouse, which is NOT here. Another team is going for him." Krit fit a comm unit into his ear that he apparently kept in his jeans pocket, and gave another one to Alec. Alec fit it into his ear and he heard a male voice, "Charges set in west wing, over."

"Maverick, what's your status?" Alec heard the voice and looked at Krit in shock.

"Is that Zack?" Alec hoped he was wrong. He didn't like the way that guy had looked at Max back when they had first rescued him from the Steelheads, and he DEFINITELY didn't trust the guy's mentality when it came to her. This was the same cyborg that tried to kill Logan because he thought the older man stood between himself and Max and their imagined future together.

Krit sighed in resignation. He so hoped Zack was at White's penthouse instead. "Yeah… Zack is leading this rescue."

"Oh really?! Then I'm definitely getting Max out myself!" he didn't want this so-called "brother" near his mate. He didn't like that mechanical douche bag at all.

"No you're not! You and Zack sniff those pheromones and all hell will break loose." Krit could only imagine the bloodshed and damage caused by that event. Like it or not, they needed their alphas. "We need all transgenics fighting on the same side, NOT fighting each other. I will get Max. Syl will lead Zack in a different direction. These comms are to hear everything that is going on but we can communicate with Syl only. Not Zack, for obvious reasons. I don't want him knowing you are here. He already knows about Max."

"How did he know about Max being here?" Alec questioned.

"He's been in charge of these plans to blast the Conclave since I was captured three days ago. I assume he found out the same time Syl and Zane did. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if getting Max out of here is what is motivating him more so than getting me or the other X5s out." He'd always known Zack had a soft spot for Max, even when they were kids. He just hoped that when the big showdown between the alphas start, they would be in safer quarters where they could express it and not while bullets were flying every which way.

Even with Alec fighting a new pheromone haze, he shrewdly looked over Krit and read him perfectly, "You think Zack and me are going to fight don't you?"

"No I don't **think** you will, I **know** you will. We just have to get you somewhere else and away from these lunatics that are trying to wipe us off the face of the earth. If you don't fuck Max before you and Zack meet up, there will be an all-out mate fight between the two alphas. Which if you haven't figured it out already, that is you and Zack. So we will send you and Max to a different meeting area, so you can get this out of the way…"

"Get 'this' out of the way? You mean sex, right? God knows I'd love to with everything I've got, but…"

"But? There's a 'but'? But nothing! You have to fuck her or Zack will! End of story. And once it's done, once Zack finally has the one woman he had wanted since we were kids, you know Zack won't give her up. Max could deny she loves him from now to doomsday and it won't matter. And if she becomes pregnant with his kid, her fate is pretty much sealed, So if you really care about her at all and you don't want her going to someone else…"

"Yeah I remember he can be a friggin' homicidal maniac when it comes to Max." Alec conceded his point.

"Right! Which means he'll kill you if he remotely THINKS Max has feelings for you after they… you know. And excuse me for being crass, but Max is not going to care whose dick she gets while in heat. I'd rather it be someone who she actually has feelings for. Zack has always loved Max, always tried to protect her when we were in Manticore, but she only sees him as her brother. Once the heat cycle is over, that need to fuck will be gone. Frankly,I don't want to see him hurt, and I know for certain Max wouldn't either. And if I know my sister the way I think I do, she'll stay with Zack simply to protect you from him. Don't let that happen!"

Alec's mind was racing. One side practically doing cartwheels at the very thought of mating with Max. There was even a separate part of his brain that was already coming up with things to do to her and with her that would surpass everything they have ever done before. But that other side that keeps holding him back knew it was simply too soon after Logan's death. If anything, the effects afterward that she would suffer mentally and emotionally would do her more harm than good. She'd hate herself, and would then want to hate him for giving in during a time of vulnerability while she was obviously still mourning for another man.

That was what Krit didn't understand. Mating rituals or not, her husband had just died ONE week ago, a whole seven days! It was too close for her mind to have to also deal with guilty feelings from a heat episode. She'd feel guilty because she gave in. And then she'd take her guilt and anger out on him for being such a horn dog.

However, Alec's brain couldn't figure out how to explain that to Krit where he could understand it. Yet another weird effect of the pheromones, taking away the ability to explain even a simple problem to someone.

On the other hand Alec did completely understand Krit's point of view as well. If he didn't figure out a way around this, he may as well kiss Max goodbye. Again. And for good this time.

But he really didn't have the luxury of time to think about it now.

"Okay, first thing's first. Let's just work on getting the hell outta here. The rest we'll deal with as it comes."

"Take down the kids Alec." Krit warned as he was crouching to get ready to leave their hiding place. "And when you come across another X5, they should hook you up with more ammo. Fight your way out."

Shooting Krit an offended look, he snapped, "I'll do what needs to be done alright? Let's go."


	17. Chapter 17

Krit crawled out from under the cage and shot cover fire, allowing Alec a chance to get out and run toward the north side of the auditorium. As soon as he saw that Alec was a safe distance away, Krit began making his way toward Max. He shot about a half dozen Familiars along the way when he realized his clip was empty.

The closest Familiar got too close for comfort. He swung at Krit with a meaty fist. Krit ducked under the fist as it swung over his head, clicked the prong to make the clip drop out, came back up and he slammed the clip less gun into the Familiar's face. Seeing another Familiar jumping in to help his comrade, he grabbed the full clip from his back pocket. Not having enough to time load it just yet, he watched the empty one falling down towards his foot. Kicking out hard, it slammed with X5 speed at the newest Familiar, knocking him out with the impact where the clip hit him between the eyes.

He used the new clip to reload his gun just in time to hear Max yell, "Krit! Look out! Behind you!"

Krit crouched, turned, aimed and was about to shoot at a female Familiar at point blank range. His eyes widened when he saw she held a crowbar high in the air that would have smashed into the back of his head if Max hadn't yelled a warning. And then just as suddenly, he heard a gunshot from above, saw it hit the Familiar in the temple, and take her down. She collapsed next to him on the floor. Krit scanned his eyes to the catwalk above and saw Alec, still holding his gun extended in front of him with both hands. Knowing Alec took the shot and knowing that was very good marksmanship for even an X5 from that distance, he found a slightly new respect for the alpha male. Krit gave him a nod in thanks, and Alec lowered the gun and gave a small nod back in response. Then he turned and left through the exit.

"Krit!" Max yelled from her glass cubicle, banging on it to get his attention. She was only about ten feet away now. "She is one of them that has the keycard to this cell. Check her pockets!"

Krit quickly turned the Familiar on her back and began patting her down, feeling a little sleazy because he had to pat over her breast pockets. "Believe me if I could, I would avoid feeling you up…" he muttered. Opening one breast pocket, he swallowed down his revulsion as he checked that pocket and found a card of some kind. Using two fingers, he pulled it out.

Credit card. That's not going to help.

He tried again on the other breast pocket and saw movement in the corner of his eye. He turned, saw another Familiar, a large male this time, coming toward him. He raised his gun and shot quickly, getting him with a head shot, knocking the Familiar backward with the impact and falling to the floor with a thud.

He needed to hurry this up. He put the gun in his waistband and began to search the female in earnest until he found the card in her back pants pocket. He jumped up triumphantly, pulled out his gun again and just kept a watchful eye for anyone coming toward him. He didn't want to waste ammo. So therefore didn't want to shoot unless he had to.

Pressing a button on his com, he asked, "Syl, I need more ammo and fast. Where do I get it? I'm getting Max out right now."

He inserted the card with a quick sweep, the little red light turned green and he could open the door. Max went to run into his arms for a hug… but her chains kind of got in the way.

And Krit berated himself inwardly for not thinking about the chains around her wrists and ankles, which would make it very hard for her to fight, or even to walk, let alone run. She could do it though, it wasn't impossible, it would just make it more challenging.

"Hey babe…" Syl replied into her com, "A couple of X5s are on their way to you and Max with additional ammo. Their ETA is less than a minute."

"Copy that. And baby, when this is over, you and I need to spend some alone time. It's been three whole days!" Krit whined a little. Max's pheromones might not make him horny for her, thank God, but it didn't make him less hormonal for his own woman. The scent made him want to find Syl and a room, fast!

"Mmmm, that sounds good. Hard and fast for the first time right?"

"You know it! But I won't leave you behind sweetheart."

"Guys!" This time it was Alec's voice interrupting the conversation, and he sounded perturbed, "Could you please NOT talk about sex while I'm listening? I really don't need that distraction right now! Did you get Max?" This line of conversation wasn't even remotely helping out his problem. The only thing that did help him was the knowledge that even under pheromone pressure, he was still an excellent marksman. Which is a skill he needed at the moment.

"Yes Asswipe, I've got her. She's fine." Krit answered, slightly exasperated that his lovely convo was cut short.

Machine gunfire sounded again, this time aimed at their heads. Krit grabbed Max and using his body as a shield, they dove back into the glass cubicle and hit the ground. When Krit raised his head again, he saw that the glass was bullet-proof.

Thank God for small favors. They could've both been killed!

"What the hell was that?" Alec asked at the same time Syl yelled in a panic, "Krit! Are you alright?"

"We're fine." Krit scanned the auditorium with his superb vision, keeping Max underneath him. "Where did that come from?"

Then more gunfire as three X5 males came in, taking down the shooter as well as anyone else in their path with their own machine guns, running quickly to the cubicle that Krit and Max used for cover.

The leader X5 was a large series like Tiny and was not one of them that had been captured. Krit recognized him as part of Zane's new unit.

"It's about time Bruiser. Another few seconds and we would've been toast!"

Krit rose up and helped Max up to a sitting position. Bruiser tossed a machine gun at Krit, who caught it expertly, then gave him additional rounds that Krit shouldered into. He stood up, held out a hand to help Max to her feet and caught Bruiser smiling predatorily at Max. And Max couldn't help but smile in a kittenish way back.

Krit rolled his eyes. Heat cycles were a pain in the ass to deal with!

"Bruiser, snap out of it! She belongs to 494. They've mated in the past. He gets first choice. But I do need you to do something." He stated, trying to get the guy's attention away from Max. Damn heat cycles!

Krit poked his head outside the cubicle, finding the auditorium is now empty with several dead Familiars scattered on the floor. Assured they were fine for the moment, he said, "Bruiser, I need you to carry Max out of here."

Bruiser never took his eyes off of Max as he ran a tongue over his bottom lip, causing Max to squirm a bit, "I'd be happy to carry the damsel in distress out."

"My hero." Max answered in a breathy version of her normal voice.

"And maybe afterward, I can show you that I can give much more than 494. I'm big, I'm rock hard…you'll never go back to little bitty 494 ever again."

"Bruiser!" Krit snapped, as he placed his handgun at the big man's temple, making Bruiser pause and realize he was seconds away from being blown away, "Lay a hand on her, even THINK about it and I'll shoot you right here and now. I don't need you if you're not going to be a team player. Do we understand each other?"


	18. Chapter 18

_"It's about time Bruiser. Another few seconds and we would've been toast!"_

Alec felt relieved for a moment that the calvary arrived for Krit and Max while he carefully made his way through one of the back passageways to head to an exit. He had already taken down three Familiars on the way, but he was out of ammo and trying to just stay out of the way of other Familiars, reserving his energy for when he'd HAVE to fight. He was thankful that Krit had given him his own comm, the worry over Max would have been distracting.

_"Bruiser, snap out of it! She belongs to 494. They've mated in the past. He gets first choice. But I do need you to do something." _

"Damn straight Krit, you tell him!" Alec stated through his ear piece, as a Familiar ran for him. He crouched, wrapped his arms nearly around the waist of the man before throwing the Familiar over his shoulder and gave him a kick in the head, effectively knocking him out.

_"Bruiser, I need you to carry Max out of here." _Alec heard Krit say, making him pause.

The anger he felt over this stranger touching her in any way was raising his hackles. "Whoa! What the fuck, man? The same Bruiser that's making eyes at MY woman? Dude, he touches her and he's a dead man."

_"I'd be happy to carry the damsel in distress out." _Alec growled in anger, his primal side wanting to beat the man that owned that deep voice.

_"My hero."_ He heard Max breathe out regarding this new guy, causing insane jealousy within him.

"No… no, no, no! That's it! Max is out of her mind with pheromones and she's FLIRTING with that mother fucker?" Alec asked in some disbelief. But the next words from this Bruiser fellow made him see red.

_"And maybe afterward, I can show you that I can give much more than 494. I'm big, I'm rock hard…you'll never go back to little bitty 494 ever again."_

"Little bitty? Who the HELL does he think he's talking about?" his voice dropped to a dangerous octave, "Let me at him!" Alec began to turn back the way he came as he cursed, "Krit, blow that bastard away. I mean it! Blow his fucking brains out! Or I'm coming down there and doing it myself. I'll show him 'little bitty'! That fucker is going to DIE!" The feral need to kill the man that was trying to mate with HIS woman behind his back caused Alec to forget for a moment where he was as he worked his way back to where he originally came from, moving further and further away from the exit.

_"Bruiser!"_ At this Alec stopped and listened to his comm_, _he heard the click of a weapon, hoping it was Krit that had the gun and not this Bruiser guy. _"Lay a hand on her, even THINK about it and I'll shoot you right here and now. I don't need you if you're not going to be a team player. Do we understand each other?"_

"Shoot him Krit! If you don't, I'm telllin' ya man, I'm coming down there and I'm going to fuck that sorry son-of-a-bitch UP. You hear that Bruiser?!" Alec yelled into his comm, spoiling for a fight.

"_Hey Asswipe, will you shut the fuck up? I've got this!" _Krit apparently heard every word Alec said and was tired of the play by play in his ear. He already knew everything that was going on and was handling it the best he could.

"Give me that loser's designation Krit, I probably know him! If he stayed behind in Manticore, I should know him."

"_Alec I can't worry about you right now. Get outta here! I'll bring Max to you."_

"But…"

"_NOW 494, we don't have time to argue, and I'm getting tired of this shit. Freaking damn heat cycles are going to get the best of me one day! GET OUT to the rendezvous point we discussed. There's a chopper waiting. I'll meet you there with Max. If I have to carry her out myself I will. Now GO!"_

Alec began making his way toward the exit again, trying to stay under the radar of any Familiars that will stop him. For the most part, he wasn't noticed. Not yet anyway.

"I have Syl on this link, right?" Alec asked.

_"Yeah, I'm here 494. Go ahead."_

"Where the hell is my ammo? I'm out!" Alec groused, "Makes it kinda hard to fight Familiars that claim to not feel pain. It's so much easier to put a bullet in their heads and be done with it."

"_Where are you located?" _Syl asked.

Alec looked around for any kind of markers as he answered, "All I know is I'm at the southwest quadrant where Krit ordered me to go. Which, by the way, he'll pay for too if one of these Familiars put my ass in a sling because I'm OUT OF FREAKING AMMO!"

Krit answered this time, _"Watch how you talk to MY woman 494, she's trying to help you! Chill out!"_

Alec cursed at Krit under his breath and he heard Krit answer, "_I heard that Asswipe. You'll find out this is for your own good later. So get over it!"_

He found a catwalk and looked down to the main floor, "It appears most everyone is heading for the main exit on the north side." He backed into the shadows for a moment and asked, "Now where the hell are you sending me? Luckily I only came across an occasional Familiar freak and it's only been one at a time. But I don't know how long my luck will last."

"_Let me check the schematics, I think you're near another weapon storage area… yeah, I got it! If you were able to look down to the north exit, I think I know where you are… go down to the next passageway and turn right. The third door on the left holds more weapons. I'll give you the keycode… here it is! The keycode is 8596417… you got that?"_

Alec followed her directions and found the door with a keypad. His perfect eidetic memory helped him remember the keycode. He began pressing the buttons, "Yeah… gimme a sec."

Once he keyed it in, the light showed red. He cursed, "Damn! That didn't work!"

"_Did you key it in exactly as I said?"_

"No I played around and did it backwards… of COURSE I put it in exactly as you said." Alec snarked, the pheromones he had ingested making him way more irritable than normal.

"_Wait! That's an idea… This could be a mirror image, meaning you may need to do it backwards. Instead of me reading this left to right, I should have done it right to left."_

"Fine! I'll try that." As Alec began to key the code in a backwards order. The light turned green, "Success! I'm in!" He told her as he opened the door and walked in.


	19. Chapter 19

_T minus three minutes! Let's blow this popsicle stand!_

Krit's words came through loud and clear in Alec's com-link as he quickly checked his own watch for verification. He found a backpack and started filling it with everything he could grab in the arsenal. Grenades, hand guns, Tasers, bullets (and making sure the bullets matched the caliber of the guns he just packed) all went inside.

He zipped up the backpack once it was full and shouldered it, then grabbed a couple of machine guns and ammo. Loading them quickly he checked his watch again. Two minutes and thirty seconds before the place blew sky high.

He touched the com-link at his ear, "Krit, Syl, somebody tell me how to get the fuck outta here. I have ammo. Where is my quickest exit?"

Syl responded, "Outside the arsenal, turn right, and then right again, follow the catwalk about 250 meters, take the stairs down to the ground floor and you should be at the back exit doors."

Krit chimed in, "And take out any and all Familiars on your way Asswipe, there are choppers waiting for us…"

Krit got cut off when Zack's demands came through, "Damn it, will someone out there report to me where 452 is?! Where is Max?"

"Out of your reach asshole." Alec muttered as he jogged down the catwalk. A Familiar stepped in his path and Alec pointed a machine gun at him, fired off a few rounds, causing the Familiar to stumble and fall over the rail to the floor below. The fallen body attracted the attention of those below, all Familiars. They looked up saw Alec, they aimed their guns at him and began firing.

"Aw shit!" Alec leaped the last several yards to the stairwell as bullets flew behind him. He crouched behind a wall at the head of the stairs as bullets pinged and ricocheted overhead. Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out two grenades. Pulling out the pin of one of them with his teeth, he counted to three and then threw it behind the wall, over the catwalk, to the ground level.

BOOM!

Debris, rock and plaster flew everywhere and the ground shook for a moment as Alec took cover from the falling debris.

"Son of a fucking bitch! What the hell was that?" Krit exclaimed.

Raising his head up and realizing no one was shooting anymore, he remarked snidely, "Ah… Hopefully blowing a few Familiars away before the actual bombs set the rest of the place on fire."

Alec checked his watch. One minute, forty five seconds. He needed to move!

He dashed down the metal spiral staircase as two Familiars were coming up to meet him. He pulled the pin out of the next grenade as he ran back up the stairs. He counted to three again, and then tossed it to one of them.

"Hey dickweeds! Catch!"

He dove behind the wall again and barely missed the explosion. Once he rose again he realized the stone wall he crouched behind was still amazingly staying upright. But when he checked the stairs, he realized they were blown away and he had no way down now.

Cursing to himself, that his heat addled brain didn't think ahead enough to see this coming, he began calculating the height from the catwalk to the ground floor as he muttered to himself, "Fuck, I hate jumping! I hate it, I hate it, I…."

He jumped over the rail and yelled loud "HATE…. HEIGHTS! FUCK YOU ALL!"

He landed like a cat, legs bent, feet on the ground as he scanned quickly around him. No one was there to meet him. What luck! Shrugging and muttering, "Hmm!" he made a dash for the door and bounded outside, jumping into one of the helicopters at the last second as it started to lift off the ground.

"Go, go, go, go, go!" Alec yelled, slapping the back of the pilot's seat as the blades got faster and faster and began to lift them higher and higher. He was in the chopper with several other X5s, male and female, all crouched and holding to straps above their heads, there were no seats in this chopper.

Several Familiars began running out shooting at the chopper and the passengers inside. Alec tossed a machine gun to one of the nearest guys and threw the backpack, making it slide to the back of the chopper to the other troops.

"Arm yourselves and SHOOT!" Alec ordered. Everyone scrambled to do as he said. Obviously knowing who the alpha of this helicopter was.

The helicopter pitched a bit, causing Alec to grab the strap above his head instead. "What the hell was that?" he asked.

One of the X5 males yelled over the sound of the motor, wind, and shooting, "The pilot's been hit, sir! I think he's dead!"

"Anyone here know how to fly a chopper?" Alec asked over the wind and trying to keep his feet steady.

Everyone shook their heads as they simply tried to hold on for dear life in the pitching craft as it wobbled side to side in the air.

Since Alec was closest to the pilot's chair, he swung his whole body toward the front of the helicopter, had to jump into the empty co-pilot chair. He pulled on the headset over his com-link and started working the controls like he was an expert.

"Mayday…. This is Alpha one two niner, the pilot's been hit, this is 494, I have control of the chopper, but we're losing fuel fast…" The buzz, buzz, buzz of the fuel gauge and the blinking red light on the panel did not help his stress level at all.

"This is Beta four two seven Alpha, can you keep her in the air?"

"Negative Beta, the fuel is almost completely gone."

"Are you clear from the strike zone?"

"Barely." Alec gritted out as he heard the engine suddenly cough and die and the rotors begin to slow.

"We have to bail out!" Alec held the controls and tried to manually keep the helicopter up to no avail, he knew it wasn't going to happen. There was only one thing to do. "Everyone we're gonna have to jump. Are there any parachutes?" He yelled behind him.

"No sir!"

_Fucking great!_

"Ok, looks like we have to take our chances. We're going to start going down, everyone to the doors, we have to jump. We'll just wait until the chopper's closer to the ground. It's the best we can do. Aim for the trees and bushes."

"Alec!" Krit yelled into the com-link. Alec bit his lip, not seeing any easy way out of this. Knowing his potential chances he responded, "Hey Krit, do me a favor… if I don't make it out of this, tell Max I've always loved her and I want her happy! Have her go back to Terminal City. Joshua knows where I keep my savings. As far as I'm concerned, it's hers and Keegan's. You got that? Do you copy?"

"You are NOT dying on us. Fight, you hear me?" Krit responded, not wanting to have to tell his sister her mate died, not wanting to have her deal with his death on top of losing a husband and being without her son. She was still mostly human and had feelings to work through. This might kill her.

Alec looked out of the chopper doors as the wind hit his face and the chopper was heading in a downward spiral, he held to the strap as hard as he could, the inertia feeling of the chopper going in circles and heading fast to the ground almost made his stomach roil.

_Cat DNA be damned! I hate heights!_

Frustrated Alec snapped out in a clipped ordering tone, "Just do as I say Krit! DO YOU COPY?"

Equally frustrated and knowing there wasn't a lot of time Krit responded, "Yes!" as he pursed his lips in aggravation. This would not go over well if Alec didn't make it. And hearing Alec calling him Krit instead of "dickhead" made him realize just how truly serious 494 was.

"That's all I need to know…Now everyone…let's go! BOOYAH!"

It was the last thing Krit heard him say as Alec leapt out of the chopper at that moment as the other eight followed behind him with the same battle cry.


	20. Chapter 20

**_Here's the real chapter... beta'd and proofed... thanks Kat!_**

"NOOOO! Alec?"

Max's cry of anguish, sorrow and pain at losing yet another loved one could be heard easily above the noise of the chopper blades as the helicopter continued south-southeast to their pre-arranged destination. Her voice carrying high, the sounds of both her human and feline side calling out for her mate.

Krit barely had time to process what Alec had just told him when he suddenly had to raise his arms up in defense from his sitting position in the helicopter. Max already on her feet and pouncing on him to grab his com-link out of his ear. Damned X5 sensitive hearing. She'd heard every word Alec had said.

"Max, what the hell?" Krit blocked a punch that was aimed for his jaw, grabbed the wrist reaching for his ear, and then used his shin to block a kick that was aimed for his groin.

Max was in a heat rage; her chosen mate having been torn away from her while she was in full-blown heat. Which at the moment, didn't bode well for Krit. Her hormones rampaging out of control, seeking an outlet. And beating on Krit seemed to be a good option.

Krit knew if she didn't choose another mate, they'd have to put up with more of the same for the next twelve to fourteen hours. Quickly using his superior strength (whether Max liked it or not), he grabbed her flailing wrists and spun her to where she practically sat on his lap, his arms around her like steel bands from behind and keeping her arms immobile within his.

"ALEC!" Max cried out, pain and anger etched within her voice as she struggled and thrashed in Krit's arms.

"Syl! Now!" Krit spit out through gritted teeth as he struggled with Max.

Syl, who sat on the other side of Krit, quickly pulled out a syringe from her inner jacket pocket. Using her teeth, she removed the plastic cover from the needle and stuck it quickly – nearly jamming it - into Max's neck and then pushed the plunger. It took less than a minute for Max to start calming down, the rage and pain still burning in her eyes. Krit continuing to hold her until Max's body finally went limp within his arms, her head lolling to the side. Finally breathing a sigh of relief, he propped her up next to him to keep her head on his shoulder while she napped.

Even out cold, she was breathtaking. The slight moisture on her face from her heat making her even more alluring to the other males in the chopper.

Syl tossed the syringe out of the open helicopter door, and yelled in irritation above the noise, "We're just as bad as the Familiars for drugging her like this!"

Krit shook his head and yelled back, "We have no choice Syl. Her heat cycle is now at a critical level, to the point where it's making her crazy… although I've actually never seen any female get quite this bad before."

Bruiser, who sat across from Krit remarked, "Oh I've seen it before… back at Manticore… THAT…" he inclined his head toward Max, "is due to YEARS of suppressing the urge to mate. She married an ordinary right? One in a wheelchair? Probably didn't satisfy her like she needed and just took the edge off to get her through it. I'm sure he didn't cut it for her. And then 494 rejected her, which is a double whammy. Now he's probably dead. But you know… I could take over as her new mate…" Bruiser eyed Max like a piece of meat and even licked his bottom lip.

The thought of this humongous X5 laying one finger on his tiny sister made Krit see red. "Over my dead body Bruiser." He answered with extreme, lethal calm while glaring at the larger X5; not one bit intimidated by his size even in the confines of the helicopter.

"That can be arranged Krit." Bruiser said, lifting a brow in his direction. He'd had his eye on Max from the moment he set eyes on her back in the Conclave, the heat pheromones having a lot to do with that. The only alpha male within close proximity to the alpha female, and he wanted her badly. He saw Krit, the stupid beta chump brother, as his competition, but he knew he could take him if given the chance. Now that his other competition, 494,was out of the way, he was determined to snag her for himself. Only too happy to annihilate any competition that got in his way as he glared at his only adversary.

"Are you threatening me? Seriously?" Krit's eyes narrowed, then he turned back to Syl, "Did he just threaten me? Did I really hear that right?"

"Afraid so." Syl answered calmly with a shrug, although inwardly she was terrified at what Bruiser was capable of. She patted the gun in her holster to make sure it was still there. She'd gladly shoot the bastard if he made a move toward her own mate.

Krit shook his head derisively, "I was beginning to think I needed to get my hearing checked. Do I need to remind you that I have no qualms about blowing your brains out if you take even a single step toward Max? I almost shot you in the Conclave, and I'll do it now without so much as a blink of conscience. Don't tempt me!"

There were seven X5 males on the chopper and six of them were edgy, obviously due to Max's rising pheromone levels, which had reached a critical point. And there were three other females, besides Max and Syl, that could help control the males if needed. Now that Max was out cold though, she wasn't secreting as many pheromones, which was a blessing for the moment. The sweat from her body's heat cycle cooling down and drying up, thanks to the heat suppressant mixed with a sedative they'd given her.

Krit closed his eyes but kept his ears tuned to any movement that would alert him of danger to himself or Max. He'd just made himself public enemy number one for Bruiser, and probably the rest of the males on the chopper, by placing himself between Max and any potential suitors. Scratch that, potential rapists really. Max would never go for the big guy sitting across from him, or anyone else, if she were in her right mind. And he sure as hell wouldn't let Bruiser within reaching range, if he had to break every bone in his body to keep it from happening.

He felt Syl link her arm through his in a comforting gesture and lay her head on his free shoulder. His tense muscles relaxed at her touch and he smirked a little at the mental image this must have made to the others. Two gorgeous women lying on him; one in heat that he had to protect, and the other mated to him. It probably looked like he had his own harem and he could feel the animosity in the chopper toward him. At any other time he'd have laughed at the visual this made.

Every single male in this chopper wanted a piece of Max. But Max had to be free to choose her own mate. And until then, Krit would keep on protecting her.

Then he thought of 494. Alec, as Max called him. Alec had earned Krit's respect, and that was a rare thing for him. Krit didn't trust easily and never had. To be honest, what'd really won him over was that Alec had meant it when he said he didn't want to jump into bed with Max so soon after her husband's death… and regardless of everything, Alec had stayed true to his word. No matter how much it'd physically and emotionally hurt Alec, he'd never crossed that line. And Krit really wouldn't have blamed him if he did. As a matter of fact, knowing his sister wanted that particular X5 and how hard that same X5 had struggled with his own instincts, Krit had actually ENCOURAGED the two of them to mate. It would have made things so much easier now if they had!

Now he needed a plan to get Max out of the chopper and into lockdown as soon as they landed. And to potentially keep drugging her until her heat ended. Since it was now fully blown, it shouldn't last much longer than another day.

Krit groaned inwardly as he realized he would probably have to stand guard himself outside her door. While, just like Max, he seemed to have shark DNA in his genetic cocktail and didn't need to sleep much, he'd barely gotten any in the last three days, and felt bone tired and completely exhausted after his stint with the Familiars. But maybe he could ask Syl to watch her for a couple of hours while he caught a nap.

Later… right now he intended to get Max to safety however he had to do it.

He felt Syl use her fingers to tap his inner wrist in Morse code.

"What about Zack?" she tapped.

Krit opened his eyes and turned to his mate, raising a brow in question. Since his hand was on her thigh, he tapped on her inner thigh in response. "I need for you to distract him until I can get her safe in lockdown somewhere… can you do that for me?"

She nodded and he smiled in response and mouthed, "I love you." She mouthed the same in response and kissed him.

"Damn it, do we really need to witness the lovey dovey bullshit? Not something I wanna see if I can't fuck." Bruiser groused and shifted a little in his seat.

Krit rolled his eyes and chose not to say anything in response. Why bother riling the big guy? It wasn't needed at this point in time. Especially considering they were in an enclosed space, and up in the air. Bruiser was a good fighter, but not the best in terms of IQ, especially while under the influence of heat pheromones. And if he jumped up without thinking and moved over to their side of the chopper, his three hundred plus pounds would shift the craft and they'd probably go down too, just like Alec and his crew. So instead, he engaged him in a stare down, silently daring the other man to blink.

But Syl responded instead, "You're just jealous."

Bruiser's eyes shifted to the blonde next to his enemy, "Damn straight I am, I'll admit it… you have a nice piece of ass right there under our noses…" Bruiser indicated Max again and then met Krit's eyes with a final warning, "Watch your back little man… that bitch is mine."

Friggin' damn heat cycles. Krit officially hated them now. They'd caused him more trouble in the last twenty-four hours than they ever had in his life. He only liked them when Syl went through them. Then it was fun! But his twin sister? Geez, now he was the male in charge of her safety, and the male that was considered literal family that could make the choice for her in her stead.

He had no intention of making that choice though. He would NOT choose someone to mate with Max and ultimately screw her life up while he was at it. The last thing he needed was for Max to be pissed at him for the rest of their lives because of ONE decision that would ultimately affect her entire future. He felt, regardless of circumstances, it simply wasn't his place to make that choice for her.

He decided then and there that he would put her in a deep dark hole, lock her up tight and periodically shoot her up with drugs until she got through this heat .

He'd never really considered himself a gentleman, but in Max's case, he'd accept that label and go to the ends of hell to keep her safe if need be.


End file.
